Unavoidable
by TStabler
Summary: There are things in life that are uncontrollable. Falling in love is one of them. The person with whom you fall in love is another. Telling them you love them is controllable, but them finding out? Nope. E/O, Slightly AU, mentions of E/K, M/A, F/C
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Some things are unavoidable. Uncontrollable. Falling in love, well, that's one of them. AU: Ages, everyone is younger. El: Thirty, Liv: Twenty-eight, Maureen: 13, Kathleen: 12, Twins: 10 Takes place beginning the third year of their partnership and works up from there. Elliot is getting a divorce.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and original characters, belong to TStabler©**

Olivia Benson hadn't gotten much sleep last night, or the night before, or the night before that, and she was terrified to admit why. She stopped for coffee on her way to work, picking up two Extra-Venti Mocha Whipped whatever-the-fucks that her partner loved so much, and trotted off, yawning, to the 16th Precinct. She almost fell asleep in the elevator, but the ding woke her up. She stepped out of the metallic lift and into the bullpen of the Special Victims Unit, dropped one of the coffees on her partners desk and plopped into her chair, trying unsuccessfully to rub the sleep out of her eyes.

Ever since she had that dream, that very vivid dream of her and her partner up against the wall in the locker room, she was afraid to close her eyes. God, just thinking about it made her weak. Weak and _wet._

"You look like hell."

Her head snapped up at the sound of his voice and she flushed at the sight of him. He was so damn gorgeous it was a sin, and his stunning blue eyes drove her mad with desire. "You really know how to sweet talk a lady, Stabler," she said, hoping sarcasm would cover the arousal in her voice. She took a sip of her coffee.

"That's what they tell me." Elliot sat in his desk and did the same. "Damn, Liv. I love that you know how I like my coffee. Thanks," he said with a smile. "Seriously, though. You okay? You really look...not like yourself." He was going to say "beautiful despite the bags under your eyes" but he was afraid she'd punch him, so he settled for "not like yourself."

"I'm fine. Just...tired. Unbelievably tired. Of _everything_." She dropped her head to her hands and squeezed the bridge of her nose. "Just, forget it, okay?"

Elliot looked at her with great concern. "Liv, listen. Go up to the cribs and catch a few winks. I'll come get you if we get a call or something, okay?"

"It's not going to help, I'm not going to be able to sleep because I'm just gonna think about..." she stopped, realizing that she was about to say something terribly embarrassing. "Stuff. I'll think about stuff, and it will keep me awake."

"Okay," Elliot said, sipping his coffee.

Olivia started typing up a DD5 from yesterday's case as she spoke. "How are things with you? How's Kathy, the kids?" Not that she liked or cared about Kathy, at all, but it was friendly conversation.

Elliot almost choked on his drink. "The kids are fabulous."

Olivia looked up, a small smirk playing at her lips. "Uh-oh, Kathy's not fabulous?"

"No, Liv. Kathy is about the most unfabulous person in the world right now. She's, um, accusing me of having an affair. Again."

Olivia picked up her coffee and sipped as she said, "That's insane, you would never do that to her."

"She thinks I'm having an affair with you," he said, looking intently at her, waiting for her reaction.

The coffee came flying out of her mouth and sprayed in an even splatter all over her paperwork and computer. She was coughing, hard. "Excuse me? Did you, uh, deny it? Of course you denied it, because we're not. We are _so_ not having an...a...thing."

Laughing, Elliot got up to get paper towels. He walked over to her desk and wiped up the coffee at the same time, patting and rubbing her back trying to ease her cough and steady her breathing. "Yeah, Liv, I denied it. She didn't believe me. Told me denying it only proved I was guilty."

"And admitting it would have made you look innocent?" she raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, Stabler, but you married a crazy woman."

"Yeah, and I'm divorcing one, too." He rose from his spot on the floor and threw out the paper towels. He returned to his seat and caught Olivia staring at him with a look of pure shock on her face. "Okay, what, Benson?"

"Well, El, that's a pretty big bomb you just dropped. Are you okay? Do you wanna talk about it?" she asked. She didn't want to hear him gush about how he loved her and didn't want to go through with it, but she needed to support him. She loved him.

Elliot frowned a bit. "Nah. Nothing to talk about, Liv. We had a good ten years, it just...fizzled. I'm fine, really."

Olivia squinted at him. "You've been married for _thirteen_ years." She raised an eyebrow at him. "Forget how to count, did you?"

Elliot laughed. "God, Liv. No. I said we had a _good_ ten years. We also had a pretty shitty _three_ years to go with them," he said as he looked at Olivia with a small smirk. "The _last_ three."

"That's how long we've been part...woah, so now _you're_ blaming me?" she said, hurt and slightly offended. "Ya know, I think I _am_ gonna go take that nap." Olivia rose to her feet and headed for the cribs.

Elliot stood up catching her at the stairs. "Liv, no! That...that isn't what I meant. _She_ blames you, I..."

"You what, Elliot?" she asked. "How, exactly, _do_ you feel about how the last three years have changed your life? Because, I could tell you some pretty _interesting _things about the way they've affected _mine_." She must have gotten pretty upset, on top of being over-tired, because she got very dizzy. Her hand shot up to her head and she wobbled, falling down the two steps she'd climbed and into Elliot's arms.

"Liv? Honey, no! Liv?" He gently slapped her face a bit, and when she didn't respond, he picked her up and carried her up the rest of the stairs, placing her gently in one of the beds in the bunkroom. He dropped to his knees next to her and gripped her hand, waiting for her to move. Her head rolled from side to side for a bit, before her eyes blinked and fluttered open. "Liv!" Elliot cried, running his hand over her hair. "Welcome back, baby," he said, looking into her foggy brown eyes.

She shook her head and blinked. Did he just call her 'baby'? "What happened?" she asked, looking down at his hand squeezing hers.

"You, uh, passed out. You haven't been sleeping, right? This was just your body's way of telling you to fuck off, I guess." He laughed, hoping to lighten the mood a bit. She smiled at him, so maybe it worked. "Liv, you gotta know, I don't blame you for my marriage falling apart, not one bit. I blame Kathy. The only thing I blame _you_ for is making me realize that I never loved Kathy in the first place. Not really," he said quickly, babbling, still running his hand over her Olivia's face and hair.

"Okay, Stabler. I'm the one suffering from sleep deprivation, but I think _you're_ the one with brain damage," Olivia muttered, shooting up to a sitting position. It made her woozy. "Woah."

"Easy, Liv," Elliot said, rubbing her back. "Easy."

She brushed him off. His touch was driving her insane. "El, I'm okay. Seriously, you can let go of me, Florence Nightengale."

Elliot laughed. "Okay." He let go of her hand and stood up. "Maybe you should tell Cragen you need the day off. Go home and get some rest," he suggested.

Olivia shook her head. "Bad idea. Well, staying here is a worse idea, but...it's fine, El. Uh, thanks for, um, this," she said, waving a hand around the cribs.

"Liv, when it comes to you, there's nothing I wouldn't do." Elliot winked at her, smiled and left, leaving Olivia to sit in silence as she fell in love with him a little bit more.

**A/N: Oh, next chappy will be one of those late night dinners that ends a bit differently... reviews?? **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Their routine of late-night take-out and conversation takes an unavoidable turn. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and original characters, belong to TStabler©**

Olivia was lying on the couch, under a blanket, trying to find a way to sleep. It was no use. This was the fourth place she's tried. She'd even tried curling up in the bathtub, but felt too stupid to sleep. She shot up and ran her hand through her hair. "Fuck. Get out of my head, Elliot," she mumbled to herself. There was a strong knock on her door, snapping her out of her lustful thoughts about her partner.

She rose from the couch and slowly padded over to the door, grabbing her gun with one hand and the knob with the other. She opened the door and relaxed when the object of her obsession appeared before her, holding a bag of Chinese food. "I know, I'm late. Cragen wanted all the paperwork I've been missing done before I left. But, I'm here, and I know you didn't eat without me." He pushed her aside and walked in, making himself at home, throwing his coat on a chair and plopping on her couch.

He fished out the cartons of food, chopsticks and egg rolls, setting up two heaping plates full, and handed her one as she sat back down on the sofa, looking confused. He said, "You didn't think I'd miss Wednesday night, did you? Liv, I would sooner get a shave and a haircut from Sweeny Todd himself."

She took the food and said, "It's two in the morning, El. I was pretty sure you weren't coming." She bit into the egg roll and he chuckled at her. "It's not funny!"

"Oh, please. You weren't sleeping. So, on the topic, you wanna tell me why you're not sleeping?" He shoveled a bite of lo mien into his mouth and Olivia swallowed her egg roll hard. Only Elliot could make chopsticks and noodles look seductive.

She shook her head and picked up some chicken and broccoli with her own pair of sticks. "You don't wanna hear it," she said as she swiped the food off of the skewers, making Elliot moan a little. He loved her mouth, her lips, and he'd give anything to be those chopsticks right now. He cleared his throat. "Uh, I do, actually. I worry about you, Liv. Maybe there's something I can do, ya know? Talk to me."

"I can't talk to you about _you_, Elliot." Her eyes grew wide as the realization of what she said hit her. "Um, you want a beer? I have beer. I'm gonna get a beer." She shot out of her seat and ran to the fridge, pulling out a bottle of Heineken. She ripped the cap off and chugged half of it down as Elliot watched from the couch, in awe. Damn, what a woman. She grabbed another two bottles and walked back to the couch, handing him one.

"Me? What about me?" he asked, popping the cap off his own bottle and taking a swig. He was getting a little hot under the collar. Olivia in her tank top and shorts as she chugged a beer, standing in the light of her fridge, was the sexiest thing he'd seen in a while and he was a tad excited.

Olivia laughed. "We're not going there. I'll get over it," she said as she bit her egg roll. "So, you and Kathy are splitting up simply because she thinks your having an affair?"

"Well, no. She _thinks_ I'm having one. I _know_ she's having one. I filed for divorce and am suing for full custody of the kids. They're with my sister for the rest of the week so they don't have to watch Kathy pack up and leave," Elliot explained nonchalantly as he poked a piece of chicken with his chopstick and shoved it into his mouth.

"She _what_?" Olivia looked at him, in shock. "El, how could she..." she paused, putting down her food. She rose from her seat and ran her hand through her hair. "I have been driving myself _crazy_ for the last two weeks, feeling guilty for even _thinking _about you, and she has the _balls_ to actually...Jesus Christ, what is _wrong_ with that woman? Is she blind? Stupid? Is she a lesbian?" Olivia turned to look at Elliot, who had an astonished look on his face. "All of the above? I mean, because she'd have to be a blind, stupid lesbian to give _you_ up, El. That _bitch!_ I have spent the last three years of my life going on dates with guys who were probably pretty amazing, but I couldn't even get through _dinner_ with them because I kept comparing them to _you_. She fucking _had_ you...for _life._...you were _hers_, and she just throws you away." On a roll, and not really realizing she was speaking out loud, she took a step toward him, behind the couch where he was sitting, and placed her hand on his shoulder. "She has serious issues, El. Brad Pitt couldn't tear me away from you." Their eyes met. She saw the surprise and shock in his blue crystalline orbs and she knew what happened. "Oh, my God."

She ripped her hand away from his shoulder and backed up. "Um, forget I said that. Just, forget everything I just said. Blame the exhaustion."

"How could you ask me to forget, Liv, what just happened here?" Elliot asked, rising to his feet and drawing closer to Olivia, who backed away with every step he took. "Liv, stop moving, dammit." She didn't. Not until she had backed herself up against the counter in the kitchen. "What did you mean when you said you were driving yourself crazy for three weeks? You were feeling guilty about thinking about me? Is that why you're not sleeping?" He came closer, and stifled a laugh when Olivia, in an attempt to back away from him even more, sat on the counter and landed in the sink.

"Um, yeah," she said, trying to push herself out of the sink and over onto the countertop, but failing. "Yes. Okay? It's not like I meant to, but, it was kind of, it was unavoidable." She stilled, giving up and relaxing into the tiny tub.

He stepped closer to her, placed an arm on either side of her and looked into her eyes, narrowing them just a bit. "You think _I've_ never thought about _you_, Liv? You honestly think I've never stayed up all night, afraid to close my eyes, because if I did, and I fell asleep, my _wife_ would _hear_ me moaning _your_ name?" He leaned in closer. "Liv, why do you think she thought we were having an affair?"

She gasped, then she saw something in his eyes. Something she'd seen in them before, but she thought she'd just been imagining. "Do you have to do that?" she asked, relaxing slightly.

Elliot furrowed his brow. "Do what?"

"Look at me like that," she said, pointing and waving her finger around his eyes.

He laughed a bit. "Like what, Liv?"

She stopped squirming, letting herself get lost in his eyes. "Like you want me."

"Well, yes, Liv, because I don't know _how_ to look at you any other way. I _want_ you, Liv. I have for the last three years. Since the day we met." He smirked, his classic Stabler smirk, and his eyes darkened a shade. "You really compare all of your dates to me?"

Olivia's eyes narrowed. "Oh, you and your damned ego," she scoffed, rolling her eyes. "I call your wife a blind, stupid lesbian bitch and that's okay, you just let it go. I tell you I may have a little crush on you and you demand all the details." She rubbed her forehead, chiding herself for getting into this mess.

Elliot laughed. "Liv, I don't _care_ what you say about Kathy, in about two weeks she's going to be my ex-wife, and if what you're feeling for me is a little crush, then we have a problem," he said sliding his hand up her arm.

"I know we have a problem, Elliot. This is a _huge_ problem. I shouldn't be having _any_ kind of feelings for you. You're my _partner_," she said, ignoring the goosebumps he was giving her.

Elliot chuckled. "I meant, that it's a _problem _if you _only_ have a crush on me, because what I feel for you is way _beyond_ a crush. Liv, slowly but surely, little by little, over the last three years, I have fallen hopelessly and completely in love with you." He took her other arm in his hand, grateful that she was stuck in the sink and couldn't run, and he searched her eyes. He smiled, a bright, beautiful smile, when he found just as much love in hers as there had been in his. She smiled back and him and the shared a laugh, a nervous one, but it grew into a full on chuckle at the silly situation they had gotten themselves into.

Olivia ran her hands up his arms, giving him goosebumps, getting even. "El, if you love me so much, could you do me a favor?" she asked, a slight tremble in her voice.

"Anything, Liv. I told you that this morning." He said as he leaned closer to her.

Olivia leaned her chin up, and their lips were almost touching. She looked into his eyes, passion, desire and heat searing into his soul as she said, "Could you get me out of the fucking sink?"

**A/N: Oh, chapter three: how do the kids and Kathy react to the news of Liv and El? **


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Their first day back at work, as a couple (?) is weird, in a good way. The kids and Kathy find out about Olivia **_**accident**_**ally, and they react differently.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and original characters, belong to TStabler©**

Olivia woke up to the smell of frying bacon. Wait a minute, she woke up. That means she fell asleep. She slept. She blinked her eyes open and was stunned to find herself on her couch, in her living room. She looked around and the place was spotless. Whoever was making breakfast had cleaned. She craned her neck to see into the kitchen, and there he was, in a tee shirt and his boxers. Elliot.

Last night had really happened. He told her he loved her while she was trapped in the sink, then he pulled her out of it and kissed her like she'd never been kissed before. She ran a single finger along her lips, remember the feel, the taste, the sound of that kiss. Yeah, she wanted more. She threw the blanket off of her and ran into the bathroom. She brushed her teeth vigorously, combed her shoulder length auburn locks, leaving them tousled and wavy, and squirted just a bit of the body spray she always wore over her arms and neck, just in case she smelled like the leather couch.

She padded back into the kitchen and took a deep breath, inching closer to the muscular man with the frying pan. "Something smells amazing," she said. "I didn't know I had bacon."

"That's because I think the last time you opened your freezer, Lincoln was president, baby," Elliot said as he flipped the pan up in the air, turning the pancakes over.

"Wow, pancakes? I had pancake mix?" She opened her cabinet and shrugged, closing it. Elliot laughed and pulled her into his arms. "No, you dope. You had eggs, milk, salt and flour. I know how to make them from scratch." He kissed her, slowly, running his fingers through her hair, sliding one hand down her back, cupping her ass when he got there. She felt his arousal and moaned softly, nibbling on his lip.

She pulled away from him, begrudgingly. "Call me selfish, but I can't stand the thought of you _ever_ kissing anyone else like that," she said, resting her forehead against his. She pushed out of his grasp and found the only two plates she owned and set them on her counter.

"Liv, I've _never_ kissed anyone else like that. Kathy and I..." he paused, unsure of how to talk about his ex with Olivia. "We weren't very passionate. No one has ever gotten to me the way that you do." He flopped two large pancakes on each plate along with a few slices of bacon. "You have no idea what it was like for me. I thought I was content, Liv. Then one day, bam! You walk into my life and suddenly I realize I was with the _wrong_ person. I'm just glad I'm fixing it all before it's too late. I'm starting a new life, with you. The life I want, the life we _both_ deserve, while we're still young enough to have a life together."

Olivia looked at him with a raised eyebrow, two fingers still on the slice of bacon hanging out of her mouth. "Life," she said with a mouth full of meat. She blinked once and he couldn't help but laugh. He dug a fork into the pancakes on his plate as he said, through his chuckle, "I'm not asking you to _marry _me, I'm just telling you that I can see us being together for a while. A _long_ while."

She bit into the bacon, chewed and smacked him in the arm. "Fucker." She opened her fridge and shuffled some things around. "I have orange juice? Who knew," she said pulling it out. She grabbed two glasses from the cabinet and poured, handing him one. "Thanks for breakfast. I didn't know you could make pancakes."

"Thanks for not punching me when I kissed you last night, or kicking me out when I wouldn't _stop_ kissing you," he said slyly, biting into his bacon.

"I haven't punched you or kicked you out, _yet_." Olivia smirked and put her juice down. "So, uh, what happens now? I mean, we have to be at work in twenty minutes, so before we go back to being Benson and Stabler, I need to know where Olivia and Elliot stand."

He pushed his plate further up on the counter and pulled her into him for another earth-shattering kiss. He pulled away slowly and looked deep into her eyes. "Elliot and Olivia are very much together."

* * *

Munch had been staring at her for fifteen minutes. There was just something _different_ about her today. "You got a haircut!"

"No, Munch," she said not looking up from the file she was reading.

"Is that a new shirt?" he asked, peering over his sunglasses.

She laughed. "No, Munch." She typed frantically into the computer and shot a glance up at Elliot, who smirked at her.

He scratched his head and shrugged. "I'm a detective, aren't I?" He looked at Fin. "Hey, what's different about Benson?"

"She hasn't tried to kill Stabler yet," he said with a chuckle. "And she looks like she got some sleep."

"That's it! She doesn't look like death warmed over, she looks good, and happy!" Munch yelled.

Olivia laughed as she got up to get her papers from the printer. "Thanks!"

"Seriously, Baby-Girl, you had us all worried for a bit. Glad to see you back to bein' Bad-Ass Benson," Fin said with a wink.

Olivia stood by the printer going over the DD5 in her hand. "Well, I guess I got over whatever annoying, irritating, confusing, conflicting, pain in my ass..."

"Okay, they get it!" Elliot yelled from his desk, simpering at her.

Olivia turned and grinned at him. "_Problem_ I was having. I am all better now. _Better_ than better."

"Glad to hear it, Benson," Cragen said as he came out of his office. "You and Stabler caught a case. Mercy General. Sixteen year old. Go." He handed Elliot a blue slip of paper with the name of the vic and they ran out of the door, Olivia dropping the DD5 into Cragen's hands on the way out.

* * *

"Well, I'm glad you got some information from the vic. Her father was a piece of work. He took a swing at me," Elliot said, rubbing his cheek. "If I wasn't a father, who would have done the same thing, I would have arrested him for assaulting a police officer."

Olivia chuckled as she rubbed the side of face. "Aw, poor baby. You want me to kiss it and make it better?" She wiggled an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, I could think of a few _other_ things you could kiss right now, too, while you're at it, Liv," he said snidely, with a wink. "Seriously, you always get to talk to the vic and I have to tell the parents that someone violated their baby."

"Well, next time _you_, you big, brawny, scary, intimidating _man_, can go into a room, alone, with a girl who was just _raped_ and _I _will tell the parents." She said, folding her arms.

Elliot smirked. "Okay, I know, I know. But, they always fucking punch me!"

"No, they always punch you after you ask them for a DNA sample," she corrected. "You did, didn't you?"

"It's standard procedure, Liv!" he said, protesting. "It's to _clear_ him. I didn't _accuse_ him," he said.

"You're whining, Stabler." She looked up when the nurse finally came back with the rape kit. "Thank you," she said. "If she remembers anything else, please call us." She handed the nurse a card and shook her hand. They walked, in sync, down the hall, when suddenly Elliot pulled her into an empty looking room, and kissed her.

"I have been wanting to do that all day," he said.

"Daddy?" a tiny voice behind him said.

He turned around and Olivia blushed as they came face-to-face with his four kids, and Kathy. They were all sitting in seats, except for Kathleen who was sitting in an examination chair. "Hey," he said as he looked at them. "What, uh, wow."

Maureen smirked. "So, Olivia's your rebound?" She had an ice pack on her knee and a few band-aids on her elbow.

"Go, Dad," said Dickie, holding an ice pack to his head.

Elliot shook his head. "No, she's _not_ a rebound, guys. I actually have to talk to you all, uh, later. What are you doing here? What happened?"

Olivia's phone rang and she answered it, shouting her last name into the cell. There was a brief moment of silence as she listened. "Oh, yeah, we found them. Thanks, Cap." She hung up the phone. "Elliot, uh, that was Cragen. Carter from the 2-9 called him as a courtesy. Apparently, your kids and ex-wife were involved in a car accident. DUI."

"What?" he said, in shock. "You guys were hit by a drunk driver?" He ran over to each one, checking out their injuries. "Someone should have called me the second this happened. Where's the guy who hit you? Did you get the plate number like I always tell you to?"

"Elliot," Olivia said. She was going to say something else when Kathleen spoke up. "Dad, _Mom_ was the _drunk_ one."

Elliot snapped his head over to Kathy, who was in cuffs. They hadn't noticed the uniformed officer in the corner of the room. "Kathy?" He stormed toward her, fuming. "Are you kidding? You drove, drunk, with the kids in the car? Are you out of your goddamned mind?"

"Elliot, calm down," Kathy sputtered.

"Calm down? I am not going to calm down! How can you tell me to calm down? You could have killed my kids!" He yelled at her, loudly. He looked up at the cop, who he recognized. "Louis, right?"

"Yeah. Detectives Stabler, and uh, Benson? Sex Crimes?" the uniformed man said, shaking Elliot's hand.

"Yeah. Carter was the arresting officer?" Elliot asked, glaring at Kathy. The uniformed officer nodded. "Good. Tell him not to show this woman _any_ professional courtesy, as she is no longer the spouse of an officer. I want her prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Notify him that there is a custody case pending, and I want this incident reflected in all the appropriate paperwork."

"Yes, sir," Louis said as he repeated Elliot's requests into his walkie-talkie.

Kathy looked at Elliot with fear and shock in her eyes. "How could you do that Elliot? That'll change everything! You'll get _full_ custody! They won't even give me visitation! How could you?"

"Me? You're the one who had a year long _affair_ with a doctor, _accused_ me of sleeping with my partner and then tried to _kill _my kids. I've done _nothing_ wrong here."

Kathy jutted her chin out in Olivia's direction. "You're doing_ her_, aren't you? That seems pretty damn wrong to me, Elliot."

Elliot turned, and as angry as he was, his heart melted as he saw Olivia making puppets and things out of cotton balls and tongue depressors to entertain his youngest kids while showing Maureen and Kathleen how her handcuffs worked. "Kathy, I fell in love with her a long time ago, but nothing happened between us until last night. Until it was over between you and me. You're the one who's got the _scarlet letter_ emblazoned on your chest. Wear it proudly in jail."

"Elliot, you can't let me go to jail! Think about the kids! They need their mother!" Kathy pleaded with him.

He scoffed. "They don't need a mother who walks out on the family, gives _everything_ up for some guy who _bails _the minute he finds out she's pregnant, and then gets wasted before picking them up from school and nearly _kills_ them. They'll do just fine with me." He looked back over at Olivia who was showing Dickie how his new depressor-plane worked. "Me and Liv."

Kathy's eyes widened. "You're...you know..."

"Yeah, Kathy, I know you're pregnant, and seeing as how I haven't touched you in the last _three years_, I know it's not mine. On top of your D.U.I, Munch and Fin are gonna come talk to you about fetal endangerment." He walked away from her, and tried to put on a happy face as he joined Olivia and the kids, who were having a blast. "Look, Daddy! Liv made me a hat out of the doctor's popsicle sticks!" Lizzie cried.

Dickie squealed, "She made me an airplane, which is ten-times cooler than her dumb hat!"

Maureen and Kathleen held up their hands. "Her handcuffs work!" they yelled, together.

Elliot laughed, amazed and touched by the effort Olivia put in to keep his kids happy and calm, and relieved that they weren't mad at her for the kiss that they'd seen. "I see that, guys. When the doctor says you're done here, you're all coming home with me," he said, resting one hand on Olivia's shoulder and the other on Kathleen's.

Kathleen looked at her father and asked, "What's gonna happen to Mom?"

"Well," he said. "She has to go with Officer Louis, and then she'll have to be punished for what she did. You guys could have been seriously hurt, you know that, right?" They all nodded. "Your mother did commit a crime, and she has to face the consequences."

"Is Olivia coming home with us, too?" Maureen asked, yanking on her wrist, which was cuffed to her sister's. Kathleen yanked back.

Olivia looked around and her face fell. "Well, no, I don't think so. I think you and your father need some time to..."

"We can watch movies!" Lizzie yelled, interrupting her.

Dickie chimed in, "I'll sit through a dumb girl movie if you come over, Liv."

"It'll be nice having a cool girl like you around for a bit. Not that Aunt Natalie isn't nice..." Kathleen said.

"She's _not_ nice," Maureen said. "She made us eat tofu, Dad. And she told us that cartoons were the Devil's way of hypnotizing children. She made Dickie read the Bible after he watched _The Simpsons_, Daddy. The _whole_ thing! She tested him on it!"

After laughing for a bit, Olivia sighed. "One movie," she said. She looked up at Elliot, who smiled down at her. "If your dad says it's okay."

Elliot squeezed her shoulder. "It's the most perfect idea my kids have ever had."

**A/N: Kathy ain't happy. Big trouble ahead! **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: If they like Liv, then it's all gonna be okay. But what if they absolutely hate their mother? Uh-oh. Takes place one-week after the last chapter.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and original characters, belong to TStabler©**

Olivia was walking down the hall after using the bathroom when she heard Maureen call her. She backed up a few paces and pushed open the oldest Stabler girl's door. The room, a typical thirteen -year-old's bedroom, was pink and white all over and decorated with posters of bands, actors and fuzzy animals. Olivia sighed. Her room was never this cool.

"Hey, Mo. You should be asleep," she said.

"I kinda wanted to talk to you before you left. I know that you didn't break up Mom and Dad. We all know. We knew she was seeing someone else behind Daddy's back," Maureen explained. "You've always been really cool, Liv. I know that you and Dad work with kids, like abused ones..." she stopped.

Olivia's eyes widened. "Mo, are you about to tell me that your parents..."

"No! Liv, Daddy never hit any of us. He gets mad a lot, but he would never touch us. Mom smacked us a lot, though. I don't know if that's abuse or not," Maureen said, shrugging, but I wanted to tell you because I could never tell Dad. Now that Mom's gone, though, I think it's safe to say it. She also said a lot of really horrible things about you, Liv. We never believed them, though. Pretty much because we just plain don't like Mom and never believed anything she said."

"Mo, why are you..."

Maureen looked up at Olivia. "Because, Liv, you make Daddy happy. He's been happier this week than we've ever seen him. He was smiling and laughing and I haven't seen him like that in so long. We have all been happy lately, Liv, and I don't know if it's because Kathy isn't here or if it's because you are, or both, but I think I speak for all of us when I say I'm happy you're here, and it's cool if you're here more often, too." She hugged Olivia, and Olivia hugged her right back. "Good night," Maureen said, laying back in her bed and pulling her blanket up to her neck.

Olivia left Maureen's room and jumped when she met Elliot out in the hallway. "God, El. Even crickets make noise!" she yelled in a whisper. "You're like the killer in a horror movie."

He chuckled as he pulled her toward him. "My kids really like you, huh?"

"Apparently," she said. "Maureen just told me..."

"Yeah," he said. "I heard her. I've been out here for a while, Liv." He kissed her, once, on the cheek. "I also think it would be cool if you were here more often."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "You would," she quipped. He chuckled again as he leaned in, kissing her neck, moving up to her mouth and laying a slow, loving kiss on her lips. She pulled away, stopping before she couldn't. "I have to go home, El. Not that I wouldn't love to stay with you, but you and your kids need more time. _We_ need more time."

"I know that, Liv. I'm not rushing us. You're too important to me." He nuzzled her neck and dropped another little kiss onto her collarbone. "I'll walk you out to your car."

Olivia stopped and turned to him. "El, at the hospital the other day, you said...you really haven't slept with Kathy in..."

"Three years. Since the day we met, Liv. I tried, but, I just, couldn't. She wasn't what I wanted anymore. Then, when we got closer, and when I knew I was really in love with you, being with _Kathy_ felt like I was cheating on _you_." Elliot caressed Olivia's cheek. "Sounds pretty crazy, right?"

Olivia blinked and smirked. "_Everything_ you say sounds pretty crazy, Stabler." She wrapped a hand around his neck and pulled him down to her, their mouths meeting and melting together in a crash of emotion. "I love you. I think it takes a _real_ man to not only remain faithful to a woman he doesn't love for the sake of his children, but to also, in his own way, remain faithful to the woman he _does_ love. El, when we do, finally, sleep together, I know it's gonna be worth the wait." He watched her get into her car and drive away, silently hoping he wouldn't have to wait too long.

* * *

He woke up, thinking about the amazing week it had been, how in love he was with Olivia and how his kids had already started asking her over for dinner every night and bugging him to take them over to her apartment. He rushed to get the kids packed and off to school, since they all had an overnight field trip to some Planetarium, and he still walked into the precinct ten minutes late. It was as if he'd stepped into a three-ring circus. Phones were ringing off the hook, the place was swarming with uniformed officers and Cragen was in his office with four men from 1PP. Olivia, irritated and annoyed, thrust a file into his hands as she blathered into her phone. He read the file and his eyes widened as he heard her conversation. "No, ma'am. The child we're looking for is white." She rolled her eyes. "White. Blanco! El niño es blanco!" She slammed the phone down, and no sooner was it on the hook did it ring again. "Benson. Oy, no. Sir, we are _not_ trying to find Siamese twins. Connected at the _what?_ No this is not...this is Special Victims...you called the police, sir, not Ripley's Believe It Or Not," she yelled, slamming the phone down. "Did anyone get an _actual_ sighting, here?"

Munch held up a hand, "Woman on Thirty-Fourth said she saw the kid running passed Macy's ten minutes ago. She described the jacket."

"That was our hold." Olivia grabbed her own jacket then grabbed Elliot. "You really need to get your ass to work on time," she barked as she ran down the hall, him following right behind her.

"Good morning to you, too, sweetheart," he quipped.

Olivia snickered. "Yeah, Cragen didn't call _you_ in at four in the morning because of your truck-load of personal shit. I've been fielding calls from people who not only think they saw this missing kid riding a donkey, but that he was doing it with Elvis and he had a mohawk. It was _so_ not a good morning."

"Sorry, Liv. I will try to have less personal shit from now on," he laughed. They were running at a clip toward Macy's on Thirty-Fourth street, then past it, trying to decide which direction to run in now. "If you were a six year old running from the man who kidnapped you, where would go from here?"

"I'd want food, El," she said, pointing to the diner across the street. They ran and pushed the door open, relieved to see the small boy at the counter, eating a stack of pancakes. "I bet theirs _suck _compared to yours," Olivia whispered to Elliot. She held up her badge to the waitress and gestured to the boy. The waitress nodded. "Nicky?" Olivia said, approaching the boy.

The boy turned around. His cheeks were both bruised, but he smiled at Olivia. "Hello." He shoveled a bite of pancake into his mouth and then offered one to her. "Wanna bite?"

"No, sweetie. Thanks," she said with a smile. She sat on the stool next to the boy. "My name's Olivia. This is my friend, Elliot. We're gonna stay with you until you're done with your pancakes, and then we're going to take you with us, okay?"

He nodded, shoveling another bite of pancake into his mouth. "Mommy and Daddy?" he asked through his full mouth.

"Yeah, buddy," Elliot said, scruffing the boy's hair. "We'll bring you to your mommy and daddy." He sat on the stool next to Olivia and wrapped an arm around her, resting his chin on her shoulder. "You'd want a bite of my pancakes, right?"

"Oh," she said with an eye roll and a light moan. "I want to _marry_ your pancakes." She pulled out her cell phone and dialed. "Yeah, Fin. We got Nicky. Eating. No, uh, we're gonna let him eat. He probably hasn't in a while. We'll bring him in when he's done."

* * *

"Okay, Nicky. Did the man who took you from the school have dark hair like Elliot's, light hair like your mommy's or in-between hair, like mine?" Olivia asked.

Nicky shrugged, then pointed at Cragen. "Like him."

"Like him? No hair?" Olivia asked. Cragen narrowed his eyes at her. "Um, if it was _really_ like my friend Don's it was magic invisible hair," she said, making a funny face at the boy, earning a laugh, and then smirking at Cragen.

Elliot, next to Cragen, absentmindedly said, "God, she is amazing."

"Yeah, she is," Cragen said. "There's an envelope on your desk that, according to Casey, says you can finally admit that out loud."

Elliot turned around and ran to his desk, picking up a rather thick envelope. He opened it and smiled. Casey's letter, which he pulled out first, said that an anonymous phone call to the judge handling his divorce gave convincing, credible and powerful character witness statements on his behalf and enticed the judge to process all of the paperwork and proceedings faster. Elliot was legally divorced, and his custody hearing date had been moved up. Casey also said, off the record of course, that he was definitely getting the children because Kathy's DUI and infidelity, along with allegations made by the character witness, were enough to declare her an unfit mother. No lawyer, no matter how good, would be able to fight successfully for full custody. His eyes, welling up with tears, shot up to the door of the interrogation room in time to see Nicky wrap his little arms around Olivia, then his mother shook her hand as they left.

Olivia walked toward him looking down at the drawing in her hand. "We got a full sketch. Nicky's description gave us _this_ guy, who kind of looks like Mr. Clean with really big eyes," she stopped when she looked up and saw the look in Elliot's eyes, the look that was directed at her. "What?"

"I love you," he said.

"Elliot, you might _not_ wanna say _that_ while we're at _work_." She turned to walk away but he grabbed her arm. "Okay, ow," she said smirking. "What'd I do, Officer?"

He held up the papers. "You called Judge Donnelly?"

"That depends. If it was a good idea, I did it. If you're pissed off, it was Munch," she said folding her arms and raising an eyebrow.

Munch yelled from his desk, "I didn't do shit, Stabler."

"I know, Munch," Elliot said with a laugh. "Liv, you got the woman to push my divorce through a week ahead of time, and she moved the date of the...why are you smirking?"

"I'm not smirking. This isn't a smirk," she said, pressing her lips together.

Elliot chuckled. "Okay, Benson, what is that silly expression on your face, then?"

"Ask me why, El. Ask me why I went to a judge that we both _despise_ and gave her enough personal and emotional information to consider her my goddamn _therapist _just so you could have that tiny, little piece of paper that declares you legally divorced a week early," she said with her this-is-not-a-smirk-smirk.

"I assumed it was because you love me, but, okay, I'll bite. Why, Liv?" he asked with a smile.

"Because, Elliot," she leaned into him and whispered, almost seductively, "It would have been terribly immoral of me to sleep with a married man while his kids are in upstate New York with their school tonight." She took the sketch with her and said something to Fin, leaving Elliot standing, dumbstruck at his desk. Olivia turned back to him and chuckled. "See, El. That, on your face, right there? That's a smirk."

**A/N: Yeah, you dirty-minded folks, you will get it, and of course, Kathy has to ruin the happy, somehow. **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thank you for the great reviews so far! Now, A moment three years in the making...**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and original characters, belong to TStabler©**

Elliot pushed his door open, holding it for Olivia who walked by carrying the food. "Ya know, you made me proud today," she said over her shoulder as she reached into the cabinet for the plates.

"Why is that?" Elliot asked, hanging up his jacket. He was shaking. Why was he nervous? He walked into the kitchen and wrapped her in his arms. The shaking stopped.

"You showed remarkable self-control tonight. You didn't punch anything, you only threatened Mr. Clean seven times, instead of your usual ten, and you even told Langan to have a nice day, when we both know you secretly hope the man chokes on a tofu-dog," Olivia said smirking. "You're in a mood."

Elliot kissed her, slow and deep. "Yeah, I am. A good one. Liv, I'm only a hot-head at work when I'm already on edge," he said. "Since I've been with you, it's like someone beat me over the head with a happy stick. I feel like I'm on drugs, Liv."

She laughed, feigning offense. "Wow, El. 'So what's your girlfriend like?' 'Oh, she makes me feel like I've been beaten up and drugged,'" Olivia said, mocking him. "You're digging a hole here, Stabler. Find a way out."

Laughing, Elliot looked at her and shook his head. "See, this is what I mean, Liv. I can't remember the last time I was able to just stand in my kitchen, be myself, and laugh with a wonderful woman in arms. A woman I can't stop kissing," he said as he leaned his head down and claimed her mouth, making good on his promise. "I love you."

"I love you, too." She looked into his eyes, his gorgeous blue eyes, and she pulled him into her again, by the shirt collar. This kiss was needy, desperate, but still filled with every emotion that had been running through her body for years. Her hands ran down his chest, grazed the waistband of his pants, and slid up his back. She raked her nails in slow patterns, up and down his spine, as she deepened the kiss. He tightened his grip on her as their tongues fought for dominance, neither one conceding to the other. Olivia, trusting that he'd catch her, jumped up and wrapped her legs around his waist and nibbled on his bottom lip when she realized that his body was strong enough to hold her up without any help from his arms. They were still wrapped around her waist.

"Bed," she said as she pulled lightly on the lip she'd been biting.

Elliot, slightly shocked, said "Food," as he took a shaky step toward the bedroom. "Cold."

"Microwave," Olivia said, countering, as she trailed her lips from his mouth to his neck and greedily sucked and nibbled the visibly throbbing pulse she found there.

Elliot moaned, which only egged her on, and carried her toward the stairs. The whole way up the steps, she enjoyed nibbling and sucking and kissing and listening to the scrumptious noises she was causing him to make. Her position around his waist also allowed her to feel every inch of him, rock hard and ready to go, through his work slacks, pressed right against her most sensitive area, and as he ran her up the steps, the friction was quite enjoyable. He held on to her with one hand, kissing her, as he opened the bedroom door. He laid her gently on the bed and crawled on top of her, never once breaking their kiss. He was terrified to make a move, even though every cell in his body needed him to. Every synapse in his brain was firing at once and he needed her, so badly, but he meant what he said. He'd wait for her.

Thankfully, Olivia wasn't in a waiting mood. She reached up and tugged his shirt out of his pants, pulling it over his head, breaking their kiss only to get the offending material out of the way. She ran her hands over his ripped upper body and moaned, a sign of approval, as she kissed him again. Then, Elliot was free to move. His hands started quickly and nimbly unbuttoning her crisp blue shirt, and his mouth followed a path, kissing every inch of newly revealed flesh. He slid the cotton off of her shoulders, allowing her to pull her arms free and he tossed it to the floor. He stopped kissing her and looked down, staring, taking in the sight of her bra-clad torso for a moment. "Gorgeous," he said before reclaiming her lips, reaching his hand around her back to un-hook the silk bra and sliding it off of her, with his eyes closed.

His pants were next on her to-remove list, and she flicked his belt open with one hand, sliding it out of the black loops and throwing it to the side. Her other delicate hand joined it's partner in unbuttoning and unzipping the pants, but Elliot, himself, shoved them off of his hips and kicked out of them, toeing them off the edge of the bed. Olivia was pleased to realize Elliot had pulled his boxers off, too. He picked his head up and slid down her body, hooking two fingers on each hand into her slacks. He'd already unzipped them, so as he traveled down the length of her body, they came with him, sliding off of her legs. He pulled them off of her feet and dropped them with a plop to the floor, right on top of his. He ran his hands back up her legs, slowly, toying with the waistband of her silk and lace panties. He looked up at her, smirking, as he teased her, sliding one finger into the material and caressing the hidden skin. His eyes fluttered shut at the contact, and he opened them again, needing to watch her reaction as he slowly, gently, torturously, swiped his finger up her slit, feeling her wetness. Olivia's eyes rolled back and Elliot groaned. He removed his hand and, catching Olivia's eyes, he licked his finger clean before sliding the silken barrier off of her body.

He made his way back up her body, slinking like a panther, and eased down on top of her, kissing her. She could feel his unyielding member pressed against her hip and she moaned into his mouth. As his hand traveled down to her warm, slick center, hers ventured to his shaft, needing to touch, feel, caress, hold every inch of this man. They gasped at the contact, both moaning and letting out a small nervous sounding laugh, but when the hands began to move the laughing stopped. All that remained were low moans, incredibly loud heartbeats and the wet, smacking sounds of their kisses and Elliot's fingers writhing into and out of Olivia's core. Elliot used his other hand and stilled Olivia's motion, knowing that if she kept it up this would be over before it even began.

Olivia ripped her mouth away from Elliot's as her back arched off of the bed a bit. "Oh, God, El," she cried. Words could not describe his thoughts and feelings, being with her, a part of him inside of her, giving her this pleasure, making her moan his name. It wasn't over. It was nowhere near over. "Elliot," she whispered against his neck, "Now, please," she pleaded.

"Are you..." she stopped him with a kiss, reaching down with a hand to remove his fingers from her core, and she slid over a few inches, positioning herself directly underneath him. She slid the hand that still held tightly onto his down her body, she wrapped his hand around his rod and guided him to her opening. She never broke their kiss. Three years. She had waited and prayed for him, sailing through a sea of unfavorable guys. He had stopped sleeping with his wife out of respect for his feelings for her. It all came down to this. He thrust his hips, gently, and as the tip of him pushed into her, he tore his lips away from hers. "Holy shit," he cried. "You feel amazing." It was like being a virgin and making love for the first time all over again, for both of them. Elliot had completely forgotten what this felt like, and Olivia was being filled and stretched to her absolute limit since it had been over a year for her, too, and Elliot was a rather large man. He pushed in a little more and gasped when he felt Olivia's nails dig into his back. Every hair on his body was standing straight up. Every cell in _hers_ was crying in a mix of pleasure and pain.

"God, Elliot," she purred, rubbing her forehead against his, looking into his eyes, making this the most intimate experience of her life. His, too, as he'd never had the desire to be this close to Kathy during sex. "You feel incredible," she whispered. He ran a hand over her head and down her face as he pushed in deeper, sheathing himself completely, and was absolutely shocked, not only to see a tear rolling down Olivia's cheek, but to feel one rolling down his own. "I love you," he said as he wiped away the warm, wet droplet. "I love you, too," she said, kissing him. After a moment of stillness, allowing both of them to adjust, he starting moving.

It was slow and deep at first, romantic and passionate, loving and gentle. Kisses, caresses and murmurings of "I love you" from the both of them filtered through the room. He pulled out all of the way before slowly sliding all of the way back in, but then, when he grabbed one of her legs and hiked it up over his hip, a seemingly primal need took over. Olivia grabbed Elliot and kissed him, feverishly, and bucked her hips, and, as if they'd been lovers for years, Elliot knew this meant he needed to move faster. He increased his rhythm, thrusting a little harder, kissing her with more demand and fervor. He felt her nails dig deeper into his back, and he heard, more than felt, the tiny snaps of skin breaking. "Jesus Christ, baby," he cried.

"Oh, shit, Elliot," she moaned as she wrapped her other leg around his waist, leaning back, twisting her lower body in magical ways. He wasn't going to last much longer, he wanted her to come with him on this ride, so he snaked a hand between them and thumbed her clit. Swiping it once, and enjoying the little scream he heard her make. Smirking, he leaned over, thrusting faster, he kissed her and stroked the little nub, back and forth, vigorously. He felt her walls clench around him, he felt his whole body tighten up. She latched onto him, moans and groans from both of them filling the room. Stroking her clit, he encouraged her. "Come on, Liv, baby. Let go," he cooed into her ear, nibbling on it. "Not till you do," she whispered back, kissing him, biting his lip. "In me," she added with another bite.

"Liv, God, I love you," he cried, as he thrust into her again. "El, God," was all she could say before her entire body started to explode and her world shattered. At least, that's what it felt like. She clamped down on him as he spilled his seed inside of her, he was trying to thrust through the vice-like grip she had on him, she was vibrating around him, pulsating, sending him into hypersensitive mode, forcing him to buck, involuntarily and violently, into her again setting off another screaming orgasm for both of them. They collapsed back onto the bed, a sweaty mess of tangled limbs, and Elliot started to roll away.

"You move and I'll kill you," Olivia spat, still clutching onto him. She nuzzled into his chest as he chuckled and pressed her lips to his neck. "Holy shit, El," she mumbled between kisses.

He nodded. "Yeah, that was pretty much the single best experience of my life," he admitted. "Sexual _and _otherwise." He rolled them over, so he wouldn't crush her, and pulled the covers up over them. "We're fucked," he said as he looked into her eyes.

"Way to state the obvious, Detective Stabler," she teased. She kissed him and rubbed her nose against his gently. "What do you mean?"

Elliot sighed. "Liv, you and I have the uncanny ability to piss each other off in the most horrendous ways, and I'm sorry, I don't care how much I piss you off, I'm not letting you walk away from me. I can't give you up. Not now, not ever, and we're fucked if Cragen finds out about us," he paused to kiss her and look into her eyes. "Because I'm going to piss you off royally by transferring or requesting a new partner. I'd rather give up my job, I'd rather lose you as my partner, than have to live without you like _this_."

"Well," she said as she rolled on top of him, feeling him harden inside her once again. "We're just gonna have to make sure that he doesn't find out for a while. See, El, contrary to, uh, what you've just witnessed," she paused, leaned over and bucked her hips, making him moan, "You'll find that I can stay pretty damn quiet when the occasion calls for it." She proved to him that she was, in fact, telling the truth.

* * *

"Benson, Stabler, my office. Now!" Cragen boomed into the squadroom. They looked at Fin and Munch, who shrugged, then they looked at each other. "What did you do?" Olivia asked.

"Me? What does it have to be me?" Elliot said, mildly offended.

Olivia scoffed. "Elliot, it's always you."

"No! That one time, when the car blew up it was your fau...no, that was me. Okay," he said, shrugging. "I don't know what I did."

They stepped into the captain's office and Elliot took a seat. Olivia stood, biting her lip, and asked, "What's up, Cap?"

"Is there something you two wanna tell me? I mean, I have suspicions, but as long as they're just _suspicions_, then I can ignore them. Once they become _facts_, I can't protect you," he said, angling his eyes as the two sheepish detectives in front of him.

"What are you talking about, Sir?" Elliot asked, gulping.

Cragen handed him a piece of paper, raised an eyebrow and said, "Everyone involved is willing to take your word for it, under the circumstances, but I, as your _captain_, want the _truth_. Are you two seeing each other? Sleeping together?"

Olivia choked, coughing on air. "Excuse me?" Her eyes widened. They weren't. At least, not until last night. And, she was pretty sure nobody knew.

"Liv," Elliot handed her the paper. "Kathy called Tucker," he said, anger in his voice. "Look, Cap, she wouldn't know even if we were. She's just pissed off because the divorce was expedited and she's got no chance of getting the kids. She'd say anything to fuck with me," he explained, running a hand through his hair. "She knows that this job, Liv, and my kids are my life. She's trying to..."

"I know," Cragen interrupted. "That's exactly what I told IAB, and they had already figured out the same thing. I just needed to hear it from you. You listen to me, both of you," he said, pointing at them. "I am not blind, I'm not stupid and I'm not on any kind of drugs. I _know_ what's going on between the two of you, I've been _watching_ and _waiting_ for three fucking years. I'm telling you right now, I know neither of you would let personal issues get in the way of your job so I would _never_ split you up, but you've gotta tell me the second you _do_ cross that line, _before_ IAB finds out, so I can_ save_ your asses. Got it?"

Shocked, surprised, and a little amused, Elliot and Olivia looked at each other then back at their captain and nodded. "Good," Cragen said. "Go."

On the way back to their desks, Olivia looked at Elliot sideways and smirked. "I knew it was your fault."

"How the hell was that my fault?" he asked with a shocked smile.

She sat in her desk and peered across at him. "_You_ married a psycho, _you_ divorced her, _you_ pissed her off. _Your _fault," she teased, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Oh, well lucky for you the next woman I'm marrying isn't a psycho, and I have no intention of ever divorcing her so I won't piss her off. At least, not that way," he said nonchalantly as he typed a DD5 on his computer. He looked up at her and saw the blank expression on her face. "Might piss her off by talking about marriage at work after only dating for a week, though."

**A/N: I know it was loong. Next: the kids come back from their trip, someone bailed Kathy out of jail, and the custody hearing!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: A slice of life, or something like it. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and original characters, belong to TStabler©**

She was running fast. Very fast. Lightning fast. She turned the corner and bolted even faster. Elliot was only a step behind her but he was shocked, stunned, at her speed. Even more shocking was the way she leaped and tackled the man they'd been chasing. He was three times her size, easy, and built like a linebacker but she took him down and yanked his arms behind him so hard his eyes teared up.

She cuffed him, roughly, squeezing the cuffs a little too tight on purpose. She was too out of breath to read him his rights, so she propped herself up and sat on him, giving herself a moment. "You," she huffed "have the right to remain silent. Anything you say...oh fuck it," she said as she pushed herself up to her feet and pulled him up by the cuffs. She turned to Elliot. "You do it."

Laughing, Elliot finished mirandizing the perp as they walked him down the block toward the waiting squad car. Once they got back to the precinct, and had the bastard in an interrogation room, the real fun began. Elliot and Olivia played off of each other so well, they almost _always_ got a confession. This guy was a voyeur-rapist. He liked to watch couples through windows and then break in, rape the girl while the man watched, then beat the hell out of both them. Elliot leaned over and ran his hand down Olivia's back, lightly grazing her ass, and he smirked when the perps eyes widened.

"So, McCallister, you like to watch?" He said, running his hand back up Olivia's spine. The man nodded dumbly. Olivia tilted her head, waiting for Elliot's next move, as she said, "Why not just enjoy the show? Why the need for audience participation?" Elliot walked around the table and stood behind her, one hand on her shoulder, massaging, the other on his hip, as if this were their normal detective behavior.

Olivia let her eyes roll back and she grinned when she heard McCallister yelp. "I couldn't help it," he cried. "I would see the man touch the woman and I would...crave the same feelings. _I'd_ want to be the one touching her, feeling her, making her moan," he said, licking his lips as he saw Elliot snake a hand around Olivia's waist and slide two fingers across the waistband of her black slacks.

"So," Elliot said. "You admit it." He let a finger hook through her belt loops and tugged, roughly, making Olivia moan.

McCallister snapped. He jumped out of his seat and when he lunged at Olivia his nose came in direct contact with her open palm. She didn't even flinch. She turned and looked at the mirror. "Get all of that?" she asked. They heard Cragen yell, "Yep.". They looked at each other, then at the unconscious man on the floor, then they walked through the door to the pit. "So, what's the verdict?" Elliot asked.

Huang smirked. "Good show, detectives. Proved that he's a bona fide sexual deviant. I don't think an insanity plea will stick because he knows he was doing something wrong but did nothing to stop it."

"I'll have him indicted and arraigned as soon as possible. Fin," Casey yelled.

"Yeah, beauti...baby...Novak?" Fin was stuttering. He never stuttered.

Casey smirked. "Drag McCallister down to a holding cell until we can get him to Central Booking, huh?" Fin nodded and walked into the room, lifting the bruised man up off the floor. "You two_ were_ just acting in there, right?" Casey asked.

A moment of silence. "Yeah, totally, absolutely," Elliot and Olivia laughed, overlapping each other. "Just go with that," Olivia said. Casey smirked as she followed Fin out to the squadroom.

Cragen looked at them, smirking. "Don't forget to thank me when you two win your Oscars."

* * *

"No," Olivia said into the phone. "I need one large pepperoni, one medium ham and pineapple, one small onion and black olive...no, I'm not pregnant! Yes, and two medium extra cheese. Thank you," she snapped and hung up the phone. "Pregnant. Damn lucky I don't drive my ass down to Ray's and haul you in for being a douchebag," she mumbled to the phone.

Elliot, behind her, laughed as he wrapped his arms around her. "Fighting with the pizza guy again?"

"Every time I call he asks if I'm pregnant!" She turned when she_ felt_ him raise his left eyebrow. "I'm not!"

"I know," he said with a laugh. "I'm sorry, my kids have weird taste in pizza," he laughed, pulling her over to the couch. "Okay, Dickie, what have you picked?"

Dickie handed his father and Olivia two pairs of paper glasses. "Escape from Death Camp Nine in Three-D!"

"Oh, gross," Kathleen whined. "Can we just skip Dickwad's turn next time?"

Olivia stifled a laugh. "Katie, what did I tell you about that?"

"Sorry, Liv. Can we skip the idiot's turn next time?" she asked.

"Katie!" Olivia yelled trying not to laugh. The doorbell rang, saving Kathleen from more scolding. "That _can't_ be the pizza already. I'll get it. You can start the movie." She kissed Elliot quickly as she rose from the couch and opened the door. She was not expecting the punch to the face, but she rebounded quickly and grabbed her attacker's arm, twisting it behind her and she yelled. "Elliot!"

"Liv, what the hell...Kathy?" He noticed Olivia's reddened cheek and watering eye and anger seeped in. "What the hell did you do now, Kathy?"

"Why is she answering the door to my house, Elliot?" the blonde in Olivia's clutches spat.

"This isn't your house anymore. We're divorced, you left me for another guy, my name is on the deed and I'm paying the mortgage, therefore you no longer live here. All your stuff is at your mother's," he explained. "What the fuck did you punch her for?"

Kathy squirmed. "She has no right being here, Elliot!"

"She's my..." he paused, realizing that if he said anything to her she'd call IAB again. "She has _every_ right to be here, Kathy, _you_ don't. Why aren't you sitting in jail?" Elliot held out a hand when he heard his kids running.

"Your sister bailed me out, Elliot. She told me that you were letting your children live in sin and squalor with some trampy redhead. I had to get out and come save my kids. I'm going to be at the hearing tomorrow."

Elliot scoffed. "Her hair's _auburn_, she's _not_ a tramp and the kids are _not_ sinning, Kathy, Natalie's crazier than you are."

"What's she doing here, Dad?" Maureen asked.

Kathleen folded her arms. "You're not letting her come back, are you?"

"Dad, do you want me to call Uncle Munch?" Lizzie asked, holding up the phone.

"I don't know, no, I'm not and yes, Lizzie, I do," he said. "Kathy, I suggest you leave before Munch gets here or he'll arrest you for trespassing and assaulting an officer."

Kathy wrestled out of Olivia's grasp and looked at her kids. "You _all_ want me to leave?" She smiled innocently at them. "I made one _little_ mistake, guys, can you forgive me?"

"Dad," Dickie said, "Mom can't leave."

Elliot stared at his son in shock, his sisters looked at him like he was crazy and Olivia, rubbing her cheek, looked very upset.

Kathy smiled and looked up at Elliot. "See? Dickie wants me to stay."

"Oh, no I don't. I just said you couldn't leave. The pizza guy's standing in the doorway," Dickie explained and pointed.

Elliot chuckled. He pulled out two twenty-dollar-bills and traded the man, the cash for the pizza, then the kids pushed Kathy out the door with him, slamming the door once she was gone.

"I get the olive and onion," Dickie yelled.

Kathleen pulled the pizzas out of her father's hands and ran to the kitchen. "The Hawaiian is mine!" The other kids followed her.

Maureen squealed. "Liv and Dad are sharing the pepperoni, Lizzie, stop poking at it!"

Olivia looked at Elliot and shook her head, smirking. "Typical day in the Stabler house," she quipped.

"She got ya good, baby," he said, running his thumb along her cheek.

"Psh, your ex-wife hits like a girl," Olivia said. She laughed when she saw the look Elliot was giving her. "_I_ don't hit like a _girl_, El. I could beat the shit out of you, right here, right now and you know it."

Elliot blinked, then smirked. "I dare you..." he stopped when she narrowed her eyes at him. "Uh, I'm not gonna dare you. I remember what happens when you get dared to do something."

"Yeah, you were there. And you're one talk! I witnessed, and took part in, quite a few Stabler dares that night and there is no way in hell I believe you were drunk, either. Catholic, my ass," she said, referring to Fin's birthday party. It was six months ago. A game of Truth-or-Dare and a bottle of tequila had landed them in some pretty interesting situations. Nothing that blaming the liquor couldn't get them out of, even though, now, they could admit that neither one had a drop to drink that night. They walked into the kitchen, hand in hand, and joined the pizza-fest with his kids, both praying that tomorrow's hearing would go well, despite Kathy being able to show up.

* * *

"Okay, I've heard from both attorneys, and I have character witness statements on behalf of Mr. Stabler. Ms. Malone, I must inform you that you have some very serious charges against you. Reckless driving, driving while intoxicated, drinking while pregnant, child and fetal endangerment, resisting arrest, falsely accusing two officers of fraternization, assaulting a police officer and a slew of other minor infractions. Still, you _are_ their mother," Judge Donnelly remarked. "I have, at the behest of a colleague, who I believe is only looking out for these children, asked _them_ which parent they would prefer to remain with full time, and the whole lot of them wish to remain with their father."

Kathy yelped, a painful cry, and her attorney patted her on the shoulder. "You're not going to listen to them, are you? They're just _children_! They don't _know_ what they want!"

"Actually, Ms. Malone, you have just proven why you will _not_ be getting custody of them. Any mother, any _good_ mother, would only be concerned with what the children want, and would listen to them. It is the ruling of this court that all four Stabler children remain in the custody and care of their father, Elliot Stabler. Visitation should be discussed between the parties involved and only allowed if the children _want_ to see their mother. This hearing is over, you're all dismissed." Donnelly rose from her seat and walked over to Elliot and Olivia.

The kids crowded around Elliot, who was trying not to cry, and hugged him tight, cheering and smiling. "Excuse me," Donnelly said. "I don't want to interrupt the moment, but I need to speak with you, Stabler."

He looked down at his kids and smiled. "Go wait with Liv, guys." He smirked as he watched them nearly tackle her into a bench, still laughing and smiling. "Thanks Judge.."

"Elliot, outside of legal proceedings, call me Liz. I don't agree with you when you make my life at work hell, but you are one hell of a father and a damn fine man," she said.

Elliot simpered. "Okay, uh, Liz, thank you. So much, you have no idea..."

"You're thanking the wrong person, Elliot. Kathy is a terrible mother, but there is someone in your life who's _going_ to be an _amazing_ one, if you play your cards right. Had me on the phone half the night convincing me to ask your kids to decide for themselves and just go with that," Donnelly said, smirking. "Her words, not mine. Funny. This woman is the same person who woke me up at three in the morning after your kids were in that accident and handed me a ton of evidence suggesting Kathy's infidelity, convincing me to expedite your divorce. I think, aside from a great mother, she'd make one hell of a lawyer. She's _very_ persuasive." Donnelly turned to leave and said, over her shoulder, "Now get out of my courthouse and take your family home."

He looked over at Olivia, holding all four of his kids, and, for the first time in years, he felt like he was looking at exactly what Donnelly had called it: his family.

**A/N: Woah, Donnelly was nice? Kathy won't give up that easy, huh? **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Caught! And what does Kathy pull now?**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"No, I'm just saying that I think the vic might be exaggerating. This doesn't feel like a violent act. He seems to really love this girl, or at least have real feelings for her. They flirted, they fucked, she freaked. I think this is nothing more than morning-after regret," Munch said, peering at his colleagues through his sunglasses.

Elliot swung back the black coffee in his cup. "Since when are you the fucking Relationship Guru, Munch,"

"Woah, Stabler," Fin said. "What the hell bit your ass? The man just has a theory, no need to attack his track record with the ladies." He looked at the only woman in the room. "What's his problem?"

Olivia, wide-eyed and quiet, raised her hands defensively. "Staying out of it."

"Yeah," Elliot scoffed. "Can't stay out of anything else, though?"

"Woah, excuse me?" Her eyes narrowed and they turned a very pretty shade of gold. Well, it would be pretty if it wasn't a sign she was fucking pissed. "Okay, what _did_ bite your ass?"

Elliot chuckled. "Nothing, can we just finish talking about this, so I can go home and _pack_?"

"Pack?" Olivia asked, confused. "Why?"

"Because, thanks to _you_ and all of your fucking _string-pulling_, Kathy filed for a property distribution settlement and Donnelly thought it was _owed _to her, had it fucking ran through overnight, now she gets half of every goddamn thing. I have to sell the house and be out of it by Friday. _Two days_!" Elliot yelled.

Olivia, jaw on the floor and arms folded, yelled back, "How _exactly_ is that _my_ fault?"

"You should have just stayed _out_ of it, Liv, then Donnelly wouldn't have _felt obligated_...oh, Christ, Liv, I'm...sorry, I'm just angry," Elliot said, softer, as he realized he was taking his anger out on the _only_ person who _didn't _deserve it.

Olivia scoffed and smirked. "Well, your wish is my command, _Stabler_. Consider me _officially_ out of it. _And_ your life." She turned back to Munch. "And yeah, I think there's something to this theory of yours Munch, but we have to prove it..."

"Liv," Elliot said, dejectedly. "I didn't mean..."

"Bite me," she spat, glaring at him from the corners of her eyes.

Elliot rose from his seat. "Can we talk about this, please?"

Cragen nodded and pointed. "If you two don't work this out _now_ I'm sending the _both_ of you home. I can't have you at each others throats while we're trying to nail a date-rapist," he said waving a hand toward the cribs.

Rolling her eyes, Olivia muttered, "Thanks, Cap. Knew I could count on you."

"You'll thank me when you're done," Cragen yelled as they climbed the steps.

Once inside the cribs, Olivia closed the door and was about to rip into Elliot but he threw his arms around her, squeezed and started crying. "I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't mean it. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and everything you've done, God, I couldn't thank you enough. I don't know_ why_ I yelled at _you_. Fuck, _Kathy_! She's so..._vindictive,"_ he rambled as he sobbed into her chest. "Where the _hell_ am I supposed to _go_? I've got _four_ kids, honey. We've established that my sister is on acid and I'm not taking them anywhere _near_ my mother," he cried as he pulled Olivia tighter.

Though she was still a bit hurt, she wrapped her arms around him. She sighed and did what she knew she had to do. "The kids have sleeping bags, right?"

Elliot sniffled, wiped his eyes and peered up at her. "You want me to take my kids my kids _camping_ until we find a house? That could take _weeks_, baby!"

"No," she laughed. She ran a hand through his hair, and her heart broke to see the tears streaming down his face. The last time she saw him cry, at all, it was during sex, their first time. She'd rather see_ those_ tears. "I want you and your kids to get all your shit in boxes tonight, sell the house to a real estate agency for _only_ what its worth, give the bitch half, and stay with me until you find a place. I only have one bedroom, so the sleeping bags are..."

She was cut off when he kissed her. This kiss, by far, was the most emotional of _any _they'd shared. He had her pressed against the wall in seconds and things had heated up pretty quickly. It was only the conscious _knowledge_ that they were at _work_ that was keeping them fully clothed. Their hands were groping and touching and rubbing through the materials that separated their bodies. Their tongues and lips were not wrestling, but dancing. They were so consumed by each other that they didn't hear the footsteps. They were only broken out of their passionate moment when the door swung open and they heard a throat clear.

"Uh, yeah. They, uh, kissed and made up. It appears that it was all a big misunderstanding," Casey yelled down the stairs to the waiting group. "You two are so lucky I wasn't Munch or Cragen," she said quietly to them. "They want you down there to finish this case, and I have to arraign someone or the D.A is gonna scalp me."

Olivia tried not to laugh as Elliot cleared his throat, straightened his tie and tried not to blush. "Uh, Casey," he said. "You're not gonna tell anyone about this, are you?"

"I haven't yet, have I?" Casey asked as she turned and walked out of the cribs.

Olivia chuckled as she moved out of Elliot's grasp. "You really thought I _wouldn't_ tell my best friend? Like you _didn't _tell Fin?"

Elliot smirked as he followed Olivia out of the room, turned off the light, and headed downstairs to close their case.

* * *

"Uh, you really needed to bring all of these books?" Olivia asked Lizzie. There were three boxes of paperbacks in the middle of the floor.

Lizzie looked up. "These are only going to last me a week, Liv."

"Oh, good, so by the time you guys leave, we can open up a bookstore and earn some money to furnish your new house." Olivia said, patting the small girl on the head.

"Liv, I'm putting these dishes in your cabinets," Maureen yelled.

Olivia shrugged. "Okay, I guess we'll need more than _two _now, huh?"

"I don't see why I can't sleep in the bathtub!" Dickie yelled at his father.

"It's not very comfortable, and the shower head drips, right on your forehead, very annoying," Olivia said. "Not that I would know, or anything," she added quickly. Elliot smirked at her, remembering the story she told him of how she had several sleepless nights over him and tried to find solace in the bathroom.

Elliot pushed the couch up against the back wall and rolled out four sleeping bags. "And there we go, guys." He wrapped an arm around Olivia's shoulders and pressed a kiss to the side of her head. "Thank you for this, baby."

Olivia looked at him and narrowed her eyes. "You should know by now. I'd do _anything_ for you." He leaned in and kissed her, sweetly. "I love you, Liv."

Maureen yelled from the kitchen, "You _are_ planning to go food shopping, right? You have orange juice, an egg, and a half-eaten pancake. The end."

"Um, we're gonna order Chinese. Guys, go tell Kathleen what you want," Olivia said with a slight laugh. "Don't you dare eat that pancake!"

"This is gonna be so cool," Kathleen said picking up the phone and carrying it into the kitchen. "Like a really long sleepover with the world's coolest stepmom."

Elliot's eyes widened and Olivia felt hers get misty. "Stepmom?" she asked.

"Katie's a, uh, fortune-teller I guess. She kinda heard me and Fin talking the other night. I _might_ have told him that I have every intention of _keeping_ you." Elliot said. "In Katie's mind, that means _marriage_, and that _would _make you her stepmother. Ya know, someday."

"Dad," Dickie yelled, "We just had the _coolest_ idea!"

Lizzie added. "I mean, it would be the most fantastic thing _ever_!"

"Okay, we can order pizza, too," he said, knowing what his kids were thinking. "But, only one!"

"No," Maureen said. "We thought it would be really cool if Olivia came _with_ us."

Olivia furrowed her brow. "Uh, if I came with you _where,_ Mo?" Elliot wrapped both arms around her and his breath hitched. His kids were about to do what he'd been trying to figure out how to do for the last six hours. "Where are you planning on going?" Olivia asked, curious.

"To the new house," Kathleen said as she waited for someone at Mr. Chow's to answer the phone. "Like, if you moved in with us, Liv!"

Dickie looked at his father. "How _awesome _would that be, Dad?"

"That would be pretty darn awesome, Dickie," Elliot said, scooping the hair out of Olivia's eyes and brushing it behind her ear. "What do you think, Liv?"

She was breathless. A month ago, she had panic attacks at the mere _thought _of telling Elliot how she felt. Then, she broke out in hives whenever she thought about telling his children they were together. But, not only did they _accept_ her, right off the bat, but they loved being with her, they actually _loved her_, and they had just asked her to move into a house that they hadn't even bought yet. Part of her was screaming, "Run," but she promised Elliot that there would be no more running_ away_ from the _inevitable_. She swore that she would only be running _toward _the _unavoidable_.

"I think that," she began, "That _does_ sound absolutely _awesome_."

**A/N: How do they all survive on Olivia's floor? Who helps them find a house? What happens when Kathy finds out Olivia's moving in? Review if you wanna know! **


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: The aftermath of a night on Olivia's floor. Who do the SVU folks know in real estate? And, oops! Hey, Kathy, didn't see ya there...**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"Oh, my God, Dickwad! Hurry up! There are three other people out here who _need_ that bathroom!" Maureen yelled.

Kathleen groaned, "If you don't move it, I'm coming in there and making sure you can never move _again_!"

"I think my spine is still somewhere in the sleeping bag," Lizzie griped, rubbing her back.

Olivia tried not to laugh. She wasn't used to having her apartment full of people, let alone full of _children_, and she thought it was all very amusing. Waking up in Elliot's arms, then springing to life and into action, cooking breakfast for a family, well, it was a lot to take in, but it was nice.

Smirking, she tapped on the bathroom door. "Dickie, pancakes." The child bolted from the bathroom and ran into the kitchen, fully dressed, as soon as the words left Olivia's mouth. "He's a Stabler man, all right. Just tell him where to find the food and watch him run like the wind."

The girls laughed, Maureen walked into the bathroom, and Elliot sent her a _look_. "I heard that."

"I know you did. You know I'm right," she said as she walked into her kitchen.

Elliot fixed six plates and set them all on the counter, put the pan in the sink, then wrapped his arms around Olivia. "You have to be the most selfless human being in the universe."

"No, I've got selfish moments," she said, digging into a pancake. Elliot grinned as he watched her eyes roll backwards. "God, making pancakes has to be your _second_ greatest talent."

"Second?" he asked with his eyebrow raised. "What's my _first_?"

Olivia scoffed, looked at him, narrowed her eyes, smirked and shook her head. "Compliment fishing, apparently." She leaned into him, pressed her lips to his quickly, then trailed her mouth across his cheek to his ear and whispered, "Sex, El. You are one highly skilled individual."

He choked on his own breath and let out a chuckle, looking at Dickie who was eating his pancakes, oblivious to the conversation. "I think _you _have quite a bit to do with my, uh, _skill_ in that particular area. Trust me. I was _not_ that talented before _you_," he said smirking. "It's _all_ you, Liv. You, uh,_ inspire_ me."

The girls ran in, attacked their plates and ate, happily, trying to ignore their stiff necks and sore backs. Ten minutes later, everyone was out the door, on their way to school and work, counting down the minutes till they'd all be allowed to go home.

* * *

"I could have gone the rest of my life without seeing that," Munch said as he walked back into the bullpen. Olivia followed him, laughing. "Munch, you still have yours. Be thankful." She sat in her desk as Elliot looked up at her, confused. Cragen stepped in and asked the same question that he'd been thinking. "What are you talking about?"

"We just came from the morgue," Munch offered.

Olivia sipped her coffee and smirked. "The vic's set of family jewels was missing a few diamonds."

"Yeah, I don't know why I offered to go with you. Stabler, you have the stomach for that kinda shit. I belong behind the desk." Munch sat in his seat and rubbed his forehead. "Benson and Warner, man, the entire time we're looking at this mutilated man, they're talking about _houses_ and _mortgages_. I could barely think straight."

Elliot, Cragen and Olivia laughed. "Fin's picking up a suspect now, so, when he gets here, you two are working your magic," Cragen said, pointing at Olivia and Elliot.

"What else is new?" Olivia asked.

Elliot looked up at her. "You were talking houses with _Warner_?"

"Yeah. You know her husband's a real estate agent. He's got this house that he can't unload. He can't find a big enough family for it, or anyone willing to pay the prie they're asking," she said, leaning over her desk. "El, it's on East Sixty-Fifth Street, five bedrooms, four bathrooms, a full security system, Wolfgang Puck designed the kitchen, there are balconies and terraces and central heating and air conditioning," she said, getting excited. "The master bedroom has an attached_ library_ and it's own _full-marble_ bathroom. There's a garden and skylights and French doors," she stopped when she saw the look she was getting. "Sorry."

Elliot laughed. "Don't be sorry. I'm thrilled that you're getting excited about this. Liv, the place sounds amazing._ Too_ amazing. How much is Hank asking for it?"

"It's _listed_ for close to three-million dollars," she spat, flinching when she heard the groan and painful cry from Elliot. "But, like I _said,_ he can't _unload_ the damn thing! Elliot, it's got a fucking _elevator! No one _has made an offer. He's knocking the price down to whatever _we_ can _afford_, if we take the place as _soon_ as _possible_. It's costing him more than what the house is worth to keep it in sellable condition because it's been on the market for _three years_."

Eliot was in shock. Utter shock. He didn't care that he was seriously considering buying a three-million dollar house for not even a quarter of the actual price, no. He was in shock because Olivia just said, "we."

"Okay, uh, I'll go talk to Hank after work, I'll have to go to the bank," he said, furrowing his brow. Was he really going to do this?

Olivia jumped on the end of his sentence. "I'll go with you. You'll need me to sign the papers and transfer half of the deposit from my account to yours. If I co-sign everything, then Hank won't need to take _too_ much of a loss, we can afford to pay a little bit _more_, and with _my_ name on things, Kathy can't claim that it was _marital_ property. Not that she'd get away with it, but I wouldn't put it passed her."

"You're serious?" he asked, surprised. His smile was betraying his true emotion, though. He was happy. She really wanted this. She wanted to, legally, move in with him.

* * *

"Okay, Dickie," Olivia said, handing him a box. "This is all breakable so be careful."

"You got it, Liv." The boy ran into the house holding the box out in front of him, as if it had a disease. Olivia reached into the trunk and grabbed another three boxes and was almost to the door when a jogger ran into her. Her great balance and cop instincts kept her upright and the boxes from falling.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, miss," the runner said, stopping and holding Olivia's elbow. Olivia put the boxes down, laughing. "It's fine," she said as she looked up. "Kathy?"

Elliot came out of the house at that moment. "Liv, you have to see the kitchen! We could fit your entire apartment..." He stopped and his temper flared when he saw his ex-wife standing less than a foot away from Olivia. "What the fuck are you doing here? How the hell did you find out..."

"El, she just ran into me," Olivia said, easing him back. "_Literally_. She _ran_ down the street and into, well, me."

"_You_ moved into _this_ house? You had two days to find a place and you get t_his _place? Elliot, this place costs _millions_," Kathy said, jaw-dropping and an accusatory tone in her voice.

Elliot smirked. There was no need to tell her that they were only paying _barely_ three-hundred-grand for it. "We can afford it," he said.

"We? You two? Elliot, you're letting _her_ move in to a house with you and our children?" Kathy folded her arms ocross her chest and tapped her foot.

Elliot shook his head. "No, _we_ bought a house for _us_, Kathy. Liv and I bought this place together for _our_ family. Not that it's any of _your_ business."

Kathy stepped back, one step, and put her hands on her hips. "I can't believe you did this without even consulting _me _or my _lawyer_."

"You have no say in this! This has _nothing_ to do with you! There was no _reason _to talk to you or your lawyer because you don't have any parental rights to the kids, and you're not _getting _spousal support from me, so notification was not required. You got half of _everything _from our marriage, which is _over_ and _done _with, Kathy, okay?" Elliot folded his arms and leaned back against the iron gate, closing the gap between him and Olivia. "You fucked up your chances of getting any kind of custody of the kids, and I'm sorry about that. I'm moving on with my life. We're happy, the kids are safe, I don't want to fight with you anymore. I don't wanna do _anything_ with you anymore, and that includes talking. I'm calling Donnelly in the morning and filing an RO."

Kathy looked at Olivia, desperation and worry in her eyes. "A what?"

"A restraining order," Olivia said quietly. "El, maybe that's a bad idea," she said, rubbing Elliot's arm.

"Oh, God. Listen to your girlfriend, Elliot. I don't need any _more_ legal trouble," Kathy said. "I didn't come here intentionally. I admit, I_ freaked_ when I saw _her_, and I flared a bit when I saw that you moved _here_, but I'm not coming back. Not unless the kids want to see me. Judge's orders," she said, shrugging. "I've got that hearing tomorrow. Sentencing. _Jail._ If you would, please, bring the kids to see me once in a while, I'd appreciate it." Kathy dropped her eyes from Elliot's and nodded, seemingly apologetically at Olivia, and then ran off down the street.

Olivia picked up the boxes she'd put down when Kathy ran into her and headed into the house, turning to Elliot. "She totally misunderstood me."

"What do you mean, baby?" he asked, grabbing the last three boxes from the car and closing the trunk.

"When I said calling Donnelly for an RO was a bad idea, I meant that it was a bad idea to _wait_ until the _morning_ to do it," Olivia said as she kicked the front door open. Elliot chuckled as he passed her and they took the last of their things into their new home.

Olivia set the boxes on the floor, closed the door and set the alarm. As she turned to look into the foyer of the place, Elliot enfolded her in his arms. "Welcome home, baby," he whispered before taking possession of her lips with his. With this kiss, everything hit her at once. She had bought a house. A real house. With _Elliot Stabler_. Her _partner_. Her...lover. She wasn't even _entirely_ sure how that happened, yet. She had a _home_, with him and his children, and outside, in front of his ex-wife he had said the words, _"our family."_ She fell into the kiss as the weight landed on her shoulders. She loved him with all of her heart and soul, but she couldn't help feeling that this was all happening way too fast, and it was way too easy, and that a large roadblock was coming. She couldn't help feeling like certain obstacles for them were simple _unavoidable_. But, she _knew_ that as long they were _together_, _they_ were _unbreakable_.

**A/N: That house **_**really**_** exists, guys. It's **_**way**_** more than three-mill, though.** **Reviews??**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Oh, boy! Olivia may have gotten in a bit over her head. And, the word around the water cooler is...all about Elliot and Olivia.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

Olivia was standing over her five-thousand-dollar chrome stove, in her Wolfgang Puck-designed kitchen, staring at a large steak. Elliot, standing in the archway, watched as she poked it with a manicured finger. He chuckled, but stayed silent, wanting to watch his beloved do...whatever it was she was _trying_ to do. Olivia reached up and grabbed a skillet from the pan rack, cast-iron, and placed it on the stovetop. Then, she poked the steak again.

"Are you trying to get it to jump into the pan by itself, baby?" Elliot asked, laughing.

Olivia sighed. "I can't do this, El. I've never cooked _anything_ for _myself_, I can't make _dinner_ for _six people_! I don't even know what to _do_ with this hunk of beef," she rambled.

"Honey, move." Elliot chuckled and gently shoved her aside. "Watch. In the fridge, get an onion, garlic and the carton of mushrooms."

Simpering, Olivia retrieved the items. "Okay, here."

"Oh, no. _You_ wanted to cook, _you're_ gonna cook. Here," he handed her a sharp chef's knife. "Chop the onion, slice the mushrooms and crush the garlic."

Olivia looked at the knife, then up at Elliot. "With this?"

"Yes," he said with a hearty laugh. "Turn it on it's side and hit it to crush the crush the garlic, and I'm pretty sure you can figure out how to slice and chop." He kissed her forehead and poured oil in the pan, lighting the flame under it, as Olivia heaved a sigh and got to choppin'. Twenty minutes later, the whole group was sitting around their cherry wood table, happily eating.

"This is really good," Dickie said with a mouth full of meat.

Maureen nodded. "These potatoes are amazing."

"You didn't tell us Liv could cook, Dad," Kathleen said.

"Oh, no. Do _not_ give me _any_ credit. I yielded and wielded a knife and cut things up. Your father made the magic happen," Olivia said, refusing to acknowledge that she really did make the potatoes all by herself.

Elliot scoffed. "We did this together, Liv."

Lizzie mumbled something with a full mouth, but it was unintelligible.

"Say that again _after _you swallow, sweetie," Olivia said.

"I said," Lizzie began with a gulp, "That you've always made a great team so it shouldn't surprise you that cook well together, too." The kids agreed, and Olivia and Elliot shared a look that meant they knew the ten year old genius was right.

* * *

Elliot blinked his eyes open and stretched his hand over to the other side of the bed, finding it empty. He popped up. "Liv? Baby?" He looked around the enormous bedroom and spotted her, outside on their terrace. Her hair blowing in the breeze, a concerned look on her face. He got out of the bed and walked out to her, wrapping his powerful, secure arms around her and he smiled when she moaned and sighed, leaning back into his embrace.

"What the hell did you do to me, El?" she asked.

Startled, he coughed. "What?"

"I mean, a month ago I was _harboring_ feelings for you, _praying_ I wouldn't slip and call you 'sexy' instead of 'Elliot'. I was _fine_, living in my tiny little apartment. Now, here we are,_ together_, on the balcony of our house. I have a _house_, and Elliot, I tried to fucking _cook_! My idea of a great dinner is an egg roll and a bag of chips, and you had me in our kitchen, because I _have_ a fucking _kitchen,_ attempting to make a _three course meal_." She looked over her shoulder and peered up at him. "You've done it, Stabler. You've made me completely _crazy_." She snaked her hand around the back of his head and pulled him down and kissed him.

"Well, you returned the favor, Benson. I haven't been this happy in my entire life, my kids are getting along for the first time in six years, I've made pancakes for breakfast every day for a month because the look you get in your eyes when you eat them is almost the same look you get when you're about to _cum_, and it drives me fucking _wild_. From the moment we kissed for the first time, I knew I couldn't spend a single night away from you," he said as he kissed her again. "Oh, yeah. I'm just as nuts as you are."

Olivia laughed. "Well, at least we'll be able to share a padded cell." She ran her hand down his back and scraped her nails back up.

"I think we need to, uh, christen the bedroom." Elliot, still firmly wrapped around her, pulled her back into the room.

"We did already," she said with a laugh.

"No, we christened the _bed_, Liv. This _room_ is fucking _huge._ We have four walls, a desk, a whole lotta _rug_ and a goddamned _library_." He smirked as he pulled her pajama top over her head and threw her up against wall number one.

* * *

"Okay, so you're telling us that she tripped and fell, and then what? She landed on your dick?" Olivia asked, bluntly, shocking no one but the man in the chair in front of her. "Your DNA was all over her, pal. Must have been one hell of a tumble," she spat.

The man gulped. "She did! I was just sitting there and she fell into my lap, like a gift from God. She was so beautiful. I couldn't help myself."

"Well," Elliot said. "I don't think God wanted you to unwrap your present _quite_ the way you _did_, Gunther."

"What's gonna happen to me?" the scared man asked.

Olivia smirked, and got up off of the table. "The same thing that happened to _her,_ Gunther. Only, the guys at Rikers wont be so _gentle_ when they, uh, open _your_ little present."

Elliot and Olivia walked out of the interrogation room and into the pit and Cragen, smirking, looked from Casey to his bright detectives. "How the hell do you it?"

"Teamwork," they said in unison.

Casey nodded with a smile. "I'll go see Judge Donnelly. Get this guy charged," she said as she walked out, stealing a glance at Fin on her way.

"Why do I have change of address forms on my desk from you two?" Cragen said, looking at Elliot and Olivia. "And why is the change on both forms to the _same _address?"

Elliot hummed and scratched a patch of hair behind his ear.

"I'm helping Elliot with the kids. Cap, he needs me, and the lease was up on my apartment, we work together anyway..."

"Save it, Benson. We had a deal. You were supposed to tell me the _second_ any kind of line was crossed," Cragen said, a hint of hurt and anger in his voice. "You didn't. You bought _a house_ together, and I have to smooth things over with IAB, _again_, to cover your tails. Now, I want the _truth_, and I want it _now_. What's going on? Is this a fling? Is this going away?" he asked waving his finger around at them. "Because I can't have my best team hating each other a week from now because they couldn't make a _relationship_ work."

Elliot met his Captain's eyes, serious and stoic, and he said, "Cap, this isn't a _fling_. It's not _going _away. This is _very_ serious. I couldn't _hate_ her if she pulled her _gun _on me and shot my _arm _off." He shrugged. "We were going to come see you about this, uh, well _I was_..."

"When?" Olivia asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Liv, please," Elliot said, raising his hand. "Cap, we're _not_ splitting up. Personally _or_ professionally, so you just tell us what we have to do to make sure IAB gets it through their heads."

Cragen huffed. "IAB doesn't know _shit_, Elliot. I said that to get you two to _tell _me. Now that you _have_, though, red tape can be cut and I can just give you two a strong reprimand." He turned and looked at them, and saw their worried and harrowed expressions. Then, he saw them clutch each others hands. He softened. "Consider yourselves reprimanded strongly."

Exhaling, they left the pit, dropping their hands, and walked to their desks. Munch raised an eyebrow, through his sunglasses, and smirked. "All right, Lucy and Ricky, what did Fred Mertz yell at you for this time?"

"Someone watches too much Nick at Nite," Olivia quipped. "Lucy and Ricky?"

Munch shrugged. "Fran and Maxwell? Fred and Wilma? Peter and Lois?"

"Okay," Olivia said holding up a hand, "The only similarity between those characters is that they're all married couples. You've just called me a funny housewife, kooky nanny, a cranky redhead and a suburban bitch. Following that logic, Elliot is a Cuban singer, British millionaire, a stubborn caveman and a complete idiot!"

Fin smirked. "Two out of four ain't bad," he said. Elliot glared at him. "I'm kiddin', Stabler."

"We're not married," Elliot said. "We're not even, um, close, look Cragen just wanted to know why we moved to the same neighborhood."

"It's the same _house,_" Munch said with a smirk. "Don't try to out-detective a detective. Something's going on and I'm gonna find out what it is sooner or later."

Olivia shrugged, "Fine, Cragen knows, Fin knows, Munch you might as well know. Elliot and I moved in together. We are together. There. Now you know."

"Thank you," he said holding out a hand to Fin. Fin slapped a crisp fifty-dollar bill into his palm and griped. "Hey, man. You said she'd never settle for Stabler. Don't snap because you were wrong."

"Dude, we made the bet two years ago! He was _married_ and she was, in my opinion, too _good _for him. I was only here for a _month _when you made the damn wager, Munch," Fin argued.

"Well," Elliot said. "You're right Fin." He looked at Olivia, smiled and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "She _is_ too good for me." He looked back up at her with nothing but love in his eyes.

Olivia smiled at him. "He was right about something else, too, El. I didn't _settle _for you. The fact is, I'd never settle for anyone _else_."

Their tender moment was interrupted when Cragen's voice bellowed from his office. "Benson, Stabler. Got a DB on Thirty-Ninth Street. Warner thinks it looks like a sexual assault taken too far." He stepped out and handed them a piece of paper. "Oh, and Elliot, Donnelly called. She handed down Kathy's sentence today. Call her when you get back from this," he said, turning back to his office.

Elliot sighed as he and Olivia grabbed their jackets. He knew that Donnelly would want to talk about why he filed an RO on his ex-wife, and he also knew that he'd get a lot of joy in hearing how much jail-time the blonde bitch was getting. He had conflicting emotions about making the phone call, but he knew that it was, like many things in his life, unavoidable.

**A/N: 10 will be up later today! If you still want it... **


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Tiny bit o' smut, tiny bit o' action, and a tiny bit of WTF is up with Casey? Elliot's sister stops by, too. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

He was sitting in their abnormally large living room, trying to read a book, but the house was quiet. Too quiet. Lizzie was at a friend's house for the night, Dickie was at a Boy Scout retreat for the weekend and Maureen and Kathleen were both at a concert with their friend Shauna and her parents, and then they'd be staying at _her _house. On top of that, he had no _clue_ where Olivia was. She was lost in her own house.

He had finally called Judge Donnelly, who told him that Kathy was sentenced to three years in jail _combined_ for all of her charges, the restraining order went through no problem, which would mean when she got out she'd have to change her running path. Kathy wasn't allowed within _one-hundred feet_ of Elliot, Olivia or the kids. He thought he would feel better, but he had a feeling that things were just going to get worse. He knew Kathy wouldn't go away, even if she was going to jail.

He was snapped out of his pessimism when he heard a throat clear. He turned his head, and standing at the foot of the spiral staircase, wearing a satin robe, was a freshly showered Olivia. His book dropped to the floor with a thud. "You'd better be naked under that thing," he said as he stared into her eyes. She smirked. "Only one way to find out," she quipped.

He was on his feet and in front of her in three seconds flat. "Kids are gone," he said as he tugged on the belt of the robe. "We have all night, alone, in this house. No need to hide in our room." He opened her robe, slowly, and gasped. "Liv, baby, you take my breath away."

Olivia shrugged out of the robe and pulled Elliot down to her for a slow, passionate kiss. Elliot lifted her off of her feet and carried her over to the couch, gently laying her down and crawling over her. Her hands roamed over his body, unbuttoning his shirt and slipping her hand between the material and his hot skin. Never breaking their kiss, they managed to get Elliot completely naked, as Olivia was, and in a moment with a sigh and a gasp, he slid inside of her.

Olivia tore her lips away from his and cried out quietly when he sheathed himself inside of her. "Liv, baby," he said as he started moving, "No kids. You don't have to be _quiet_. I wanna _hear _you. I wanna hear _everything_." He looked into her eyes, something he made a point to do whenever they made love, intimacy being important to him where Olivia was concerned, and he grinned when he heard her moan. "Christ, El," she cried. He increased his speed and moved a little to the left and she _screamed_ in pleasure. "Fucking hell, baby. What did you just do?" she asked as her nails dug into his ass.

"I don't know," he said with a grunt and a thrust. "But, I'm trying like hell to do it again." He finally did, and the most _incredible_ noise he'd ever heard her make was ripped from her throat. "God, yes," she moaned. "Fuck, Liv, baby," Elliot groaned as he thrust once more, sending them both over the edge. He spilled and stilled inside of her, wrapped in her arms, panting, and she giggled. "What?" he asked.

Olivia clenched around him again and bucked her hips, making an overly _sensitive _Elliot seethe in painful pleasure. "You're not done, buddy. There are seven other rooms in this house that we can do that in without four kids running around." Elliot smirked as he got a grip on Olivia and carried her into the kitchen.

* * *

Cragen and Munch were in the van, watching through the restaurant window. "Okay, he's at the bar. He's looking for a vic. It's go time," Cragen said into the communicator. Olivia and Elliot heard him. She threw her water in his face and rose from her seat. "You asshole," she yelled, "Whatever this was, it's over." She stormed out of the restaurant and heard Munch buzzing in her ear. "Wow, it worked. He's following you. Stabler's following him, so relax, Olivia. This bastard's not gonna hurt you."

"Who's are you trying to convince, Munch?" she asked with a smirk. "Me or you?"

"Just keep walking, Benson," Cragen said. "He's still tailing you, Elliot's right behind him."

Her heart stopped briefly when the man behind her grabbed her from behind, wrapping a hand around her mouth. He pulled her into the alley, and with his free hand he was hiking up her dress. "This won't hurt if you don't fight, darling," he said, right into the wire she was wearing. He moved to remove his belt, but she elbowed him in the ribs and weaseled out of his grasp. She turned, training her gun on him and found Elliot doing the same thing from the other side.

"What the hell?" the man asked. "You're cops? How the hell are you cops?"

Olivia shrugged. "What, cops can't go out to dinner? You picked the wrong girl to attack, Fredricks."

Elliot cuffed him and dragged him over to the waiting van, handing him off to Munch and Cragen. Olivia pulled off the wire and digital recorder and handed them to Munch. "Good job, guys. We'll meet you back at the station," Cragen said, pulling away.

"You okay?" Elliot asked, running his hand through Olivia's hair.

Olivia smiled and nodded. "Wasn't in any danger with you right behind him." She ran her hand down his cheek. "You look good wet." He laughed and took her hand, leading her to their car.

* * *

"We have him on tape, saying the same thing the other four vics remember their attacker saying. He followed me out of the place after I fought with Elliot, the same way the other women say they were followed after publicly fighting or breaking up with their significant others," Olivia explained to Casey, with Elliot by her side. "He followed them, knowing they were in a vulnerable state, knowing they'd be alone and weaker than usual."

Casey hummed, but was staring at Fin. "Yeah, good."

Olivia glanced at Elliot and raised her eyebrow. "Yeah, Case, and then Elliot and I were abducted by aliens."

"I'll have them arraigned," she said, still staring in Fin's direction. "Donnelly'll bite."

"We're getting married, I'm pregnant. With triplets," Olivia said, trying to get a reaction.

Casey heard that. "Wait..what?"

"I was kidding," she said. "Christ, Casey. I explained _everything_ to you about this case, because you're the _prosecutor_, and you heard _nothing_. What's up with you?" Olivia asked, leaning in. "I told you about me and El, is there something going on with you and _Fin_?"

Casey shrugged. "Maybe I kind of _wish_ there was," she said. "Look, Olivia, I'm sorry I spaced out on you. I'm sure everything was up to scruff. I'll arraign this guy as soon as I can. And, for what it's worth, I'm glad he didn't hurt you." Casey sighed, sent another glance toward Fin and walked out of the squadroom.

"She's got it bad," Elliot said.

Olivia scoffed. "No, honey. I had it _bad,_ she has it _mildly intolerable_."

Elliot laughed and sat in his seat. "So, are you sure you're okay? I mean I know you're a tough cookie..."

"El, I'm fine. All he did was pin me against a wall and move my dress a little. Once he said what we needed him to say I fought him off of me without any problem. I'm cool," she said. And she meant it. Elliot knew her, inside and out, and he knew every which way to read her eyes. She was telling the truth. She was fine.

"Everyone, out. Home. Now. If I need you, I'll call you. It's late and you all did one hell of a job tonight," Cragen said, stepping out of his office and into the hallway.

* * *

They pulled up to their house, pulled the car into the driveway and got out. They were laughing and chatting about their sting operation, Olivia reassuring Elliot that she would never really throw water, or any other drink, in his face, when the got to the steps. They both paled.

"Hey, Natalie. What are you doing here?" Elliot asked.

"Oh, I just came by to meet the home-wrecking _trollop_ who drove my sister-in-law crazy," Elliot's sister proclaimed. "Kathy said you didn't show up to her hearing this morning, and she's upset you haven't brought the kids to see her. She's pregnant, Elliot! The stress could..."

Elliot threw his hands up in the air. "For God's sake, Nat. _Kathy_ left _me_. _She_ cheated on _me_. I didn't start seeing Olivia until I filed for divorce. I swear! Did you even know that the baby Kathy's carrying isn't mine?"

Natalie balked. "Wh...what?"

"Yeah. It's not." Elliot pulled Olivia up the stairs by the hand, and unlocked the door. "And, for the record, Kathy's _always_ been crazy. She never told you that she got pregnant with Maureen on purpose so I wouldn't break up with her, did she?"

"Um, no." Natalie looked as if her whole world crashed down around her. "Elliot, I..."

"You'd believe _anything_ Kathy says before even asking your own brother. You bailed her out of jail, but do you know _what _she was arrested for?"

"She told me it was an unpaid parking ticket," Natalie said, biting her nails.

Olivia and Elliot chuckled. "No," Elliot said. "When she picked up the kids from school to take them to your house, the night she was arrested, she was _drunk_. You bailed her out of jail for almost killing your nieces and nephew. Kathy's been lying to you, about everything, _including _Olivia. Do you even know _who_ she _is_, Nat?" he asked, nodding in Olivia's direction.

"Well, no. Just what Kathy told me," Natalie said softly, realizing she'd screwed up.

"Natalie, I'd like you to meet Detective Benson," Elliot said with a smirk.

Natalie's eyes widened. "_You're_ Benson? His _partner_? Goodness, he talks about you all the time. _Every_ conversation for the last three _years_ has had something to do with you. You saved his life," she babbled.

"Yeah. A couple of times. He's saved mine just as many. Tonight included," Olivia said, giving Elliot's hand a squeeze.

"Elliot, I am so sorry. I should have asked for your side of things. I guess, being a woman, I just..."

"Blamed the man. Yeah," Elliot scoffed. "That's like you. Oh, if we ever forgive you, and let you watch our kids, they're allowed to watch cartoons and they hate tofu." Elliot pushed open the door, pulled Olivia inside and slammed it in Natalie's face.

He turned to set the alarm on the door and saw Olivia, staring at him with a dreamy expression. "What?" he asked, smirking at her.

"You called them _our_ kids," she said, almost whispering.

Elliot pushed the button, making his house a virtual fortress, and pulled Olivia close to him, smiling. "That's what they _are_ now, baby."

"I guess I'm still trying to get used to all of this. One kiss from you and I had an instant family. I am a very lucky woman," she said, smiling and nuzzling his nose.

"_I'm_ the lucky one, Liv." Elliot kissed Olivia, with a fervent passion and desire that made both of their hearts burst. Something, soon, had to convince her that he and the kids weren't going anywhere. He had a very expensive item hidden in their bedroom, and he needed to be _certain_ she wouldn't up and run when he gave it to her. He wanted to take his time, woo her a bit more, settle into a routine. But, he figured, there was no reason they couldn't do all of that while she was wearing an extra piece of _jewelry_. Waiting would only put off the inevitable. He knew that his future lied _solely_ with Olivia. It was unavoidable.

**A/N: Hmmm. What's coming next? Another little smutlet...at work...oh, boy! And will Elliot talk to someone _else_ about his little_ gift_ for Olivia?**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Work related smutlet, are Liv and El getting FIRED? (oh, no!), and a not-so-normal conversation with Captain Cragen**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

Life with four kids and a virtual husband was taking its toll on Olivia. She'd never been _happier_, but she'd never been more _exhausted_, either. She was on her eighth cup of coffee, having to resort to drinking Munch's house-brewed sludge. With every sip, she made a face and choked a little.

"Hey," he said. "Don't drink it if you don't like it." Munch chuckled. He just didn't understand _why_ no one else seemed to like coffee you could stand your spoon _up_ in, when he adored the stuff.

"Well, Munch, there is only one _other_ thing, besides caffeine, that gives me energy, and I _highly_ doubt I can get that _right now_," Olivia said, running a hand through her hair while struggling to find a lost DD5. "So, your motor oil will just _have_ to do."

Everyone chuckled, except for Elliot, who looked like he just _won _the fucking _lottery_. "Hey, Liv, uh, could you help me put these files in the evidence locker?" he asked.

"El, there's only, like, ten. You really _need_ my help?" she asked, irritated.

Elliot looked at her with narrowed eyes. "I would really appreciate your assistance, yes."

Olivia shrugged, rolled her eyes, and huffed. "Jesus, Elliot. Fine," she griped, rising from her chair. "Men. I'll probably get stuck filing the damn things, you'll just sit there."

They walked down the hall and turned left into the evidence room, and when the door was shut behind them, Olivia was thrown, roughly, against the wall. "Woah, El, what the hell are you doing?"

"Uh, you." He latched onto her neck with his lips and pulled down her pants without even unzipping them. They weren't that stretchy, but he was being very insistent, so her pants were wise to just go along with him. "I know you know how to be_ quiet_, baby, but this calls for fucking _silent_," he stated.

"El, this is _nuts,"_ she whispered as he unzipped and shimmied out of his own pants. "I wasn't even aware that you were..."

"I'm _always_ in the mood when you're around, Liv. All I gotta do is _look_ at you. We're both tired, we _need _this if we're gonna get through the rest of the day." He lifted her up and sat her on a low filing cabinet, hooked two fingers into the sides of her panties and slid them down her legs. "I think we're the only two people in the universe who can _renew _their energy by having sex," he laughed.

Olivia smirked. "At work, no less. Do you have any idea how..." She couldn't finish her sentence because he thrust into her, quickly and deeply. Elliot smirked when he saw her bite her lip, pressing them together tightly to keep from screaming. The smallest little moan escaped, and he leaned down and whispered softly into her ear, "Shhh." He started to move, then he figured he'd have a little fun with her, make her work _extra_ hard. He shifted and hit that magic spot that always made her scream and growl and cry his name, and because she _couldn't_, she bit him, right in the neck, making _him _almost scream. "Oh, fuck. Liv, shit," he yelled in a throaty whisper. He thrust harder, careful not to move the filing cabinet, which would alert people outside to what they were doing.

"Oh, El, goddamn," she gasped, finally tearing her mouth off of his neck, licking and suckling around the nice bruise and teeth-marks she'd left behind.

"Liv, you have no _idea_, shit, baby," he panted. "How long I have wanted to do _this_. Just knowing, oh, fuck, Liv," he cried as he felt her clenching already. "Knowing that someone could hear us, walk in on us, or even just _guess_ what we're doing. It makes it _that_ much better." Elliot was doing his damndest to make this fantasy come true last as long as possible, and he knew that the rest of his squad would soon wonder where the hell they _were._

* * *

"Okay, it does _not_ take forty-five minutes to file ten DD5's. Where'd they go?" Munch asked.

Fin shrugged. "Maybe they went downstairs to get _real_ coffee so Benson would stop choking on your _molasses_."

Cragen came out of his office, perplexed. "Where the hell are Benson and Stabler? Neither one of them is answering their cell."

"They went to file old reports. After that, who the hell knows?" Fin said, smugly.

"We're right here," Olivia said, passing out coffee. "Sorry, but I couldn't take another cup of that goop. We figured you guys couldn't either. The, uh, coffee shop had bad reception, Cap. Didn't see that I had nine missed calls from you until we got back up here." She wasn't about to tell them that Elliot ran like hell down to the shop while Olivia got dressed and that it only took him five minutes to do so, and the only reason they _missed _nine calls, _each_, is because their phones were in their pockets and their pants were on the _floor_ while they _fucked_ each other _silly._

Munch looked at her, gratefully taking the coffee. "Wow, Benson. You weren't kidding. Real coffee makes you all glowy and happy. You kinda look _drugged_."

"Gee, thanks, Munch," she quipped.

"Caffeine _is_ a drug," Cragen said. "Thanks for the java, by the way. You two, I was calling because the good people at One-P-P reviewed you records, and, uh, I need your shields."

Olivia choked on her coffee. "I'm sorry, _what?"_

"Benson, please. Just hand it over." Cragen held out his hand.

"I don't understand! We didn't do anything wrong! If this is about us..."

"Olivia, give me your damn badge and shut up," Cragen boomed. "You, too, Elliot."

Confused, scared and heartbroken, they both unclipped their badges and gave them to Cragen. He then walked into his office, heavy footed.

"Were we just fired?" Elliot asked, looking dejectedly at Olivia.

Olivia gulped. "I think so, yeah." She grabbed her jacket and tried to fight the tears. She had pulled it on and said, "But, he _didn't_ ask for our guns."

Cragen came back out of his office. "Where the hell do you think you're going?" he asked when he saw them preparing to leave.

"Cap, you just took our shields," Elliot began. "We assumed..."

"I took _them_ so I could give you _these_. Congratulations, you're both_ Lead_ Detectives, notice the new shiny 'LD' engarved on the top?" Cragen asked with a smirk. He knew he probably just made them shit a few bricks, but that's what they get for thinking he couldn't hear them through the wall, no matter _how_ quiet they were.

"Holy shit," Elliot gasped, picking up his new badge. "This is..."

"Unbelievable," Olivia finished.

Munch and Fin looked over at them and shook their heads. "Actually, it was kind of unavoidable. You two have a _ninety-eight_ percent case-closure rate, and you can get the _Pope _to confess to a crime he didn't commit by using one of your tag-team tactics," Munch explained.

Olivia stared at Munch. "How the _hell _do you know what our case-closure rate is? _I _didn't even know that!"

"I'm competitive. I had to see how far Fin and I were _behind_ you, so I checked. It's public record. You can Google it," he said with a smirk and a chuckle.

Elliot folded his arms. "And just how far behind _are_ you guys?"

"You beat us by _five_ points," Fin said with a shake of his head. "Cause' I get Scrawny Ass over here, and you get a woman who could probably take down _Tyson._" Fin looked up at Elliot. "That's why you go out on more chases and calls than we do. Munch'll probably break in half before we even get down the fuckin' _block_."

"Hey," Munch said, offended. "I'm great with paperwork and interrogations!"

The unit laughed, and Olivia took a deep breath, took off her coat and sat back down. Elliot walked over to Cragen "Hey, Cap, can I, uh, talk to you for a minute?"

"Yeah, sure." Cragen led Elliot to his office and told him to have a seat, then leaned against his desk, folding his arms. He smirked, having an idea of what this would be about.

"Um, I'm a pretty traditional guy, so I feel that I need to ask permission for this, but Liv," he paused, taking a deep breath. "She doesn't _have_ a traditional life, or any _family_ to speak of, besides _us_, so, I'm going to ask _you_. Liv thinks of you as a father, you know that?"

Cragen's eyes widened. "What?"

"Yeah, she does. I do, too. My father wasn't a very nice guy. You've been more of a dad to me than he _ever_ was. And I know you think of us as your kids, you've told us that, a lot. We _do_ get _grounded_ and you_ know_ you love us," he said with a smile. "She's _kind_ of like your _daughter_. Right? Um, and also, I'm gonna ask, because I need to tell you anyway, to help us get around certain _professional_ roadblocks, and.."

"Elliot, you're shaking and you're very pale. Are you okay?" Cragen stepped over to him and rested a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm fine," he said with a slight crack in his voice. "I didn't think I'd be this nervous! Don," he said, surprising Cragen by using his first name. "With your permission, your _blessing_, uh, I'd like to...no, um, I would very much _love_ to ask Liv to marry me."

Cragen was stunned, speechless and had tears in his eyes. He did the only thing he could do. He pulled Elliot up from his chair and gave him a tight, manly, hug. As father would give a son.

"Is this a yes?" Elliot asked, returning the hug.

"Yeah, son," Cragen said with a sniffle. "It's a big one." He pulled away from Elliot and wiped his eyes, trying to remain the rugged man-in-charge. "When are you planning on doing this?"

Elliot cleared his throat. "See, Cap, that's _another_ thing. I know when, where _and_ how, but I need your help." Elliot leaned against Cragen's desk, and it was the captain's turn to have a seat, as he told the man in front of him exactly how he planned to give the woman of his dreams a night she'd never forget.

**A/N: Oh, yeah. It's gonna be amazing. Next chapter, but you need to review this one, first! **


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: This just seemed so "Elliot", and so "Detective". Chap's a bit long. Hope you don't mind. I think it's worth it.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns characters and Law and Order: SVU. TStabler©, that's me, owns the story, plot, narrative and dialogue.**

Elliot had seemed off today. Everyone noticed. Munch made a comment about his irrational temper being more irrational than usual. Fin, usually one to give him more credit, was trying to get him to rub his ears and say, "Ooh, sah." Some calming technique he'd seen in some movie that he_ swore_ really helped. Cragen just kept_ laughing_ at him and Olivia was two seconds away from slapping the _shit_ out of him. She kept giving him the oddest looks, and if her eyebrow raised any higher, it would've jumped right off of her forehead.

"I'm fine, Munch," Elliot said.

"You, my friend, are _not_ fine." Munch bent his head and peered over his dark glasses at him. "Have you been eating anything that has not been USDA or FDA approved?"

Elliot chuckled. "No," he said. "This isn't some conspiracy-enhanced government mood-altering thing, Munch. I'm just a little on edge today."

"A little?" Fin asked. "You almost ripped Valdez's arm off because he wouldn't get out of your way!"

Munch shrugged. "Stabler's always been a little violent with the perps, though, Fin."

"Valdez is the security guard in the elevator, you dolt!" Olivia said, rising from her seat to get more coffee. Dickie didn't choose a horror movie last night. He did, however, choose _Perry Conner and the Lord of the Chamber of Hidden Temples IV_, which was almost four hours long, and she was the only one who stayed awake so he could finish watching it. As she yawned, Elliot smiled at her. She was such a _mother._

Elliot sighed, "Okay, so I'm a _lot_ on edge."

Olivia looked at him. She remembered their conversation on the terrace. The one where he said he wasn't on edge anymore because _she_ had this uncanny ability of calming him down. When did that _change?_ Did she do something wrong? Did _she _upset him last night in some way? She thought she did _all _the right things. Hell, she had the time of her _life_ in that hot tub. "El," she asked once she sat back down. "Are we," she began, but she paused. She took a deep breath. It _hurt_ to need someone this much, and it killed her that she had to ask for _reassurance_. She was a self-confident, strong woman, damn it, and this _man_ made her doubt everything about herself. "You're not upset or angry with…"

"God, Liv, no," he said with a very serious expression. "No, whatever mood I am in, I promise, it's all _my_ fault. You've done _nothing_ to contribute to the nervous wreck that I am today." But, he knew she could be the one to make it stop.

She smiled, sat down and drank her coffee as her phone rang, taking them out into the field. "Didn't we just do this?" she asked Cragen. "How many undercover sting operations per week do we have to have before you're required to give me a shoe and dress budget?" she quipped.

Cragen looked at Elliot. "You ready to do this again?"

"As long as it's with Liv, hell yeah," he said with a smirk. They were _not_ talking about the undercover op.

* * *

The restaurant was much nicer than the one from last week, and to her surprise, they actually provided a dress, new shoes, and jewelry and they had someone do her hair and makeup. When she walked in to meet Elliot at the table, he couldn't catch his breath. "You look so gorgeous," he said as he stood to pull her chair out.

"Thank you," she said. "You look quite handsome yourself, there, Stabler. It's a shame we have to waste this all on a _fake_ date."

Elliot shrugged. "We can always _pretend_ it's a real one, baby. We don't even know if this guy's here yet, if he's even coming, if he's gonna take the bait," he listed.

"True," she said with a smile. "Wow, champagne?" she asked, staring at the waiter, who had brought over a bottle of very expensive bubbly. "Are we supposed to be drinking this? We're working," she said as the cork was popped.

Elliot cleared his throat. "One glass isn't gonna impair your judgment, honey." He raised his glass to her. "Ya know, uh, how long have we been partners?"

"Three years," she said, raising her eyebrow. "Put your glass down." She narrowed her eyes and looked around, hoping they weren't causing a scene. "Stakeout one-oh-one, El. Don't draw unnecessary attention to yourself."

Elliot laughed. "Lighten up, Liv," he said, swigging back the full glass, and pouring himself another one.

"El, uh, you need to lighten _down_, I think." She shook her head and scanned the area. "I don't get it, they gave me a complete makeover, but didn't give me a bug. Are you wearing one? Cragen's gotta keep in contact with us _somehow_."

Elliot nodded. "Trust, me, Liv. Cragen can see _and_ hear everything that's going on." He sipped his champagne and looked at her, and took her hand from across the table. He smiled. "I'm not gonna waste this night, Liv. I've loved you for the last three years. The last two months with you have been the best days of my life, and I just keep falling more and more in love with you. I know it's all happened so _fast_, but in a way, we've taken three years to get here. I look at our partnership like a courtship, Liv, and I look at the last eight weeks as just taking the next step. I hope that's the way you see it."

"God, El. You know I do," she said with a sweet smile. "Do you really think you should be doing this _now?_ This is a _set-up_. You wanna make me _cry _when we're _supposed _to be watching for some _psycho_?" she asked with tears in her eyes.

Elliot squeezed her hand. "Liv, baby, look _around_."

Olivia took a good, long look around the restaurant, and all eyes were on them. The tables near them were filled with their friends and family. His kids, Cragen, Casey and Alex, Fin and Munch, Melinda and Hank and their daughter. "Okay, this is…what _is_ this?"

"This _is_ a set-up, Liv. But, _not_ for some psycho. For_ you_," he said, blinking and standing.

Olivia, too, blinked. "_You_ did all of this? Why?"

"Because, I needed to ask you this in a way that you'd _never_ forget, in a way that was _special_." He kneeled down in front of her. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue box, which she immediately recognized as being from Tiffany's. She gasped, raising a hand to her mouth. "In a way that, I hope, you can't _refuse._" He flipped open the box and took a deep breath as he turned it around to face her, and he smiled as he saw a tear roll down her cheek. "Liv, for the last three years, I got used to us being a team, always having each others backs, _protecting_ each other. I got used to _loving_ you, and in the last two months, I got used to _you_ loving _me_. I got used to seeing my kids _happy_, having a real _mother_ for the first time. I got used to having you in my _arms_, _kissing_ you, you're the first thing I see when I wake up in the morning and the last thing I see before I go to sleep at night, and I never want to live any _other_ way. I never want to get _used _to anything _else_. Liv, baby, will you marry me?"

There was not a dry eye in the place. Even the tough men were sniffly, and Fin, the big teddy bear, found his hand entangled with Casey's. "Elliot," Olivia said, softly, with the only voice she could find. "I love you. Yes. _God_, yes." She shook slightly, as did he, as he slipped the three-carat princess-cut diamond solitaire ring on her finger. She threw her arms around his neck and cried softly into his neck and she was shocked to feel his hot tears hit her bare shoulders. The sound of the applause and whistles broke them out of their little trance, and they pulled back, looking at each other, staring lovingly into each other's eyes.

"You just made me the happiest man on the planet, baby," Elliot said, kissing her.

Olivia nuzzled his cheek with hers. "Well, you made me the happiest woman on Earth the day you told me you loved me, El. This is just icing on the cake," she quipped. "The, uh, _wedding _cake, apparently." She and Elliot laughed as he rose from his knee and pulled her to her feet, wrapping her in his arms, and kissing her passionately.

They made their way around the room, being congratulated by everyone and the kids hugged and squeezed Olivia tightly. "You know this means we're calling you 'Mom' from now on, right?" Lizzie stated as she hugged Olivia. Olivia laughed. "Okay, if that's really what you guys want."

They all nodded. "It is, Mom," said Dickie, who surprised Elliot by having tears in his eyes.

"Hey, Dickie," Elliot said. "Come here." His son followed him over to a corner, wiping his eyes and clearing his throat. "Are you okay, bud? I thought you guys were okay with this. I asked you all..."

"Dad, yeah! I'm just," Dickie paused. "I'm just really happy, ya know? She's really, officially, gonna be my mom. I don't have to just _wish_ she was anymore."

Touched beyond belief, Elliot gave his son a hug, picking the ten-year-old up and carrying him back to his family. Cragen walked over to them, shook Elliot's hand, the one that wasn't holding on to his son, and then hugged Olivia. "I couldn't be happier for the two of you, really. When Elliot asked me, I thought he was out of his damn mind. But, I was so touched, Olivia, because I really do think of you as a daughter, and at this moment, I feel like a very emotional father."

"Asked you what, Cap?" Olivia asked, smiling, but confused.

Cragen looked at Elliot who rolled his eyes and smirked. "I didn't tell her, Don."

"Oh, uh, well, whoops." Cragen scratched behind his ear and cleared his throat. "Elliot came to me, a few days ago, and asked for your hand in marriage. He told me he felt like he needed to ask your father, out of respect and tradition, but since you don't, uh, you know, he asked me."

Olivia looked at Elliot and fresh tears filled her eyes. "What?"

"Well, Liv, I didn't do anything the right way, the first time. It was the wrong girl for the wrong reason, I didn't ask her parents because they already wanted to kill me," he said, setting Dickie down and watching him run happily toward his siblings and Gabby Warner. "This time, from start to finish, I wanted to get everything right." He held out his hand, which Olivia gladly took.

"El, you didn't need to do all of this," she said, touching her forehead to his. "I don't need…"

"I know," he said, cutting her off. He kissed her, sweetly. "But, you sure as hell _deserve_ all of this." He pulled her gently back toward the crowd of people, who were all smiling and laughing, and tried to wrap his head around the fact that he was finally going to have the wedding he'd really wanted, with the woman he truly_ needed_. She was reeling from the unavoidable realization that her relationship with Elliot was well and truly _permanent_. And they was so consumed by their happiness, that they completely missed the uninvited guest, staring coldly, sitting in a corner table, tapping his fingers, grumbling about his poor choice of restaurant tonight.

**A/N: And who is this man? Find out, after you review! What did you think of the proposal? **


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Who was that guy who was at the surprise engagement? Why is he so glum? How will Liv react to waking up one step closer to being Mrs. Elliot Stabler?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns characters and Law and Order: SVU. TStabler©, that's me, owns the story, plot, narrative and dialogue**

Olivia woke up, in Elliot's arms, and couldn't feel anything below her neck. She was jelly, and aching, but it was _so_ worth it. She reminded herself to thank Melinda for taking the kids so she and Elliot could be alone last night. They were _completely_ uninhibited after all the romance and emotion, and she had the bruises, bite marks and soreness to prove it. She could only_ imagine_ how many scratches and crescent-shaped cuts, from her nails and teeth, were peppering Elliot's otherwise perfect body. Thank God this new house was insulated. They were _beyond_ loud, violent and vulgar, and if _anyone_ had _heard_ them, Munch, Fin or someone from _Homicide_ would have certainly showed up. She fluttered her eyes open and tried to move, but a low ache kept her from going anywhere. He was still inside of her. He moaned and gave a good thrust, causing her to yelp.

"Morning, sunshine," he said. "You are the best alarm clock in the world, you know that?"

She moaned as he slid out and in, rocking her slowly, the pain and pressure mixing, blending and building to an intense pleasurable crescendo. "Shit, El, we have to, Christ, shower and go to, fuck, work," she panted.

"Baby, goddamn, Liv, we'll have plenty of time." It didn't take long, but it was powerful and strong for them both, and she held on, digging her nails into the sides of his arms. "Damn, Liv," he said as he came inside of her, "Look what you did to Jesus," he snickered, peering down at his tattoo. Trickles of blood ran down the work of art that adorned his bicep, and Olivia had to laugh. Her nails had dug right into the Lord's palms.

After they showered, together, washing and worshipping each other's bodies in a _different_ way, they grabbed coffee and some fresh bagels and ran out the door.

The precinct was bustling when they got there. Casey was sitting on Fin's desk waiting for something to do, Fin and Munch were both on phones taking calls, Cragen was hanging photos and stats on the clear wipe-off case-board, and Elliot was staring at Olivia's desk with a perplexed and slightly jealous look in his eyes. Olivia was confused until she, too, saw what he was staring at. She ran over and picked up the card that was clipped into the roses.

"Um, who are they from?" Elliot asked, hoping she had an answer like "my aunt" or "a third cousin."

Olivia's eyes almost popped out of her skull. "Um, Andy."

"_Eckerson_? The Marshall? The guy who always tried to get himself _killed_?" Elliot spat in disbelief.

"No, El, Andy _Kauffman_, the _dead comedian_," Olivia replied sarcastically. "Yeah, Eckerson. El, he's the only 'Andy' I know. He was, uh, at the restaurant last night, and he's very upset that we didn't call him. He wants to, um, talk to me." There was something in her eyes, something that said there was more to it than that.

Elliot ripped the card out of her hands, despite her protests. "'Dearest Olivia, give me another chance. Don't throw your life away on that insipid hot-head. Was I really that bad?' Sounds like he wants to do more than _talk_, Liv. No way. No way in hell." He threw the card in the trashcan, lifted the roses off of her desk and handed them to Casey, who took them, looked at Elliot blankly, then shrugged and put the flowers down on Fin's desk.

Olivia rolled her eyes and smirked. "I wasn't _going_ to meet him, Elliot!" She got butterflies, just then, watching him get jealous. Since they'd met, she'd _never_ seen him get jealous when Kathy mentioned another man, but whenever_ she_ had a date, a boyfriend, or even a friend that happened to be _male_, he gave _her_ the _third degree_ and ran a background check on _him_. He lost it. Olivia found it incredibly _sexy._

"Hey," Cragen yelled. "Can we deal with your 'nine-oh-two-one-oh' shit later? We've got two girls, two rape-murders, two different motives, on opposite ends of our district." He handed his detectives each a copy of the file.

"If MO and location are different, then why are both cases in one file?" Munch asked.

Olivia stepped up to the board and pointed to the photos of the vics. "The girls are twins." She studied the rest of the photos, paying close attention to the ground around the victims bodies and, as she was looking, Elliot came up behind her. "And they were killed by the same person," they said together, as Elliot reached for the same close-up photo of a shoeprint she had her hand on.

Cragen shook his head and grinned. "This is why they're the best. They share a fucking brain. It took me four hours to spot that."

* * *

Six hours later, Elliot was sitting next to Olivia on the back of an EMT van. Elliot had an ice pack held to his left cheek and Olivia had one held to her right hand, which was wrapped in white gauze. "That was fun," he said as he pressed a napkin to his bleeding lip.

"Oh, yeah. Better than Disneyland," she quipped, tossing the ice pack into the van and rubbing the side of her head that hit the wall when the perp had thrown her into it. "At least we got him," she said as the stretcher rolled by, the man lying on it crying and moaning, in pain shouting some nonsense about police brutality.

"You have got to be kidding me," Elliot cried, his eyes widening, then narrowing in pain as he winced. He instinctively reached for Olivia.

"Detective Stabler, and Olivia, thank you for making my job easy," Andy said. "I have been chasing Paul Monroe for weeks, through four states." He smiled, holding out his hand, which neither of them took.

Olivia smugly simpered. "Our hands are a bit preoccupied right now," she said, indicating her injured right, Elliot's ice-pack holding left and raising their clutched hands in the middle, her ring sparkling in the streetlight as Elliot twisted her hand in his.

"Ah," he said, dropping his hand. "I was hoping I would have a chance to speak with you, _privately_, Olivia."

"It's Detective Benson," she said. "And anything you have to say to me, you can say in front of _my partner_."

He scoffed. "Fine, why are you _marrying_ him?"

Olivia stared at him, expressionless, for a full beat. "Really? You just asked me that? Those words _actually_ came out of your mouth? Are you_ new_?"

"I want to know. I want _reasons_. What does he _have_, what can he _give _you that I couldn't?" Andy put his hands on his hips and pouted.

"You are _five _years old," Olivia said, more to Elliot than Andy, and she heard Elliot snicker. "I am marrying him because I love him. It takes a rocket scientist to figure that one out."

"I need a better reason," Andy said. "You loved me once, too."

Olivia sighed, and felt Elliot squeeze her hand. Ah, jealousy. "Okay, Eckerson. Elliot is the most amazing man I have _ever_ met. He's brilliant, funny, gorgeous. He's my partner. He's kept me _safe_, kept me out of trouble, I_ trust_ him completely. He's my _best friend_, I can tell him anything, and I know he won't _judge_ me. _And_ he has never wanted to do anything simply because it could _kill_ him, Mr. Hey-Olivia-let's-go-cliff-diving-in-Mexico-and-then-climb-back-up-without-a-harness-and-see-who-can-break-more-bones." She dropped her eyes and moved, accidentally cracking one of her bruised knuckles, seething through her clenched teeth. "And, no, Andy. I mean, yes, I _loved_ you, but not enough to _marry_ you. I loved you, but I was always, _always_, in love with Elliot."

Andy relaxed. "Well, thank you," he said with a sigh. "That's, uh, all I wanted to know. As long as you're happy, _Detective Benson_." He smiled sadly, then glared at Elliot before walking toward the U.S. Marshall's car.

"That was...wow, Liv...all that stuff you said," Elliot muttered, leaning closer to her, but stopping when the pain hit. "How do I respond to that when it hurts to move my mouth?"

Olivia laughed. "I'm _wearing_ your response, El," she said, wriggling her fingers in his hand. "What I said, there, was everything that I couldn't say last night, when you asked me to marry you, because I couldn't breathe." She pressed a kiss to his temple. "And by the time I caught my breath, we were wrapped up in a conversation with everyone else."

"So, you don't feeling like I'm rushing you?" he asked, peering into her eyes, searching her _soul_ for the truth.

"No, El. You were right. We've been together long enough, we _know_ we belong together, we know this is what we both _want_. It took a little time, but I'm _ready_. For everything." She looked back into his eyes and she saw them darken. Her heart sped up. "El, Hank still has the kids. They're at Dickie's game, and then they're going out for pizza. They won't be back till _eleven_."

Elliot's eyes darkened another shade and he spun his head around, hopping off the van. "Where the _fuck_ is the EMT? We're going home. Now."

Olivia chuckled as she jumped off the van and followed her fiancée to their car. Their plans, however, came to an abrupt halt, as they had four slashed tires. Elliot pulled out his phone and called Munch as Olivia waved Cragen over. "This night just keeps getting better," Elliot gruffed. "Yeah, Munch. We have a problem."

**A/N: Well, at least their happy, right? Um, for now? Who slashed their tires? *Doink Doink* **


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: So, who slashed their tires? Is Andy really gonna give up that quickly? And how rough is**_** too**_** rough?**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

They had called Hank from the bullpen, after getting a ride back with Cragen. He and Melinda didn't have a problem keeping the kids another night. The Warners were getting a much bigger Christmas basket this year.

Their car was currently in the crime lab's garage, being processed and examined to find out how the tires were slashed, with what tool and, if possible, by whom. Olivia was walking up and down the empty hallway and perked her head up when she heard a familiar grunting coming from the workout room. She approached the door, opened it slowly, and her breath hitched. God, the man was beautiful.

She watched him, her heart beating faster every time his fist hit the punching bag. His body was rippling and sparkling with a light sheen of sweat. She was definitely aroused. He, however, was definitely pissed off. First, he had to deal with his fiancée's insane ex sending her flowers, then he had to _run into_ said ex and watch him hit on her right before someone slashed all four tires on their brand new car, ruining their perfectly planned evening of sex and snuggling. He was visualizing Andy's face with every punch, and somehow, it wasn't enough. There was a lot of steam he needed to blow off, and this wasn't working. He laid another blow to the bag with a hard grunt and that's when he heard Olivia moan. She couldn't help it.

A rush of adrenaline shot through him. "Liv?" he asked, stopping instantly, breathing heavily, holding the bag still.

"Oh, yeah. It's me," she stepped forward and was just about to rest a hand on his shoulder.

He jerked away from her. "Don't," he panted. "Touching me, right now, is a bad idea." He turned toward her and she saw the anger in his eyes, but she knew it wasn't directed at her.

"El," she said, "You're scaring me."

"Yeah," he said, squeezing his eyes shut. "I'm scaring myself, baby." His hands slid down the bag, trembling, and he stepped away from her, leaning his forehead up against the wall.

She grabbed his hand, gently. "I'm here, if you need me."

Elliot turned his head, slowly, with a fire in his eyes she'd never seen before. "I need you," he said. She went weak in the knees and he pulled her to him, roughly. "I_ told_ you touching me was a bad idea." He slanted his lips over hers and palmed her left breast through her shirt, squeezing. Shocked, but not resisting, Olivia groaned and ground her hips into Elliot, spurring him into motion. Still attached at the lips, he tore her shirt off, sending the buttons flying. He must have had one hell of grip on it because he ripped her bra apart, too. She shrugged out of the useless bits of cloth while Elliot pulled her slacks down, without unbuttoning or unzipping them, sending another button sailing across the room. He hooked a finger through the side of her panties, which were _soaked_, and ripped them clean off of her. She yipped in pain, briefly, hopped up, looping her legs around his waist and yelped when he slammed her into the wall.

They were _still_ kissing, as Elliot tugged his sweatpants down just enough to free his painfully hard rod. She bit his already split lip as he impaled her with no warning, no ease, no grace. He made a painful, wincing noise, as his cut was reopened, but he didn't stop kissing her, he _couldn't_ stop kissing her. He didn't start moving slowly like he usually did, no, this was frantic, rough, hard and_ almost_ violent right from the first thrust. Burying himself inside of her to the hilt, slamming in and out every time, he was brutal. But, she didn't seem to be complaining. On the contrary, she was making some of the most _incredible_ noises he'd ever heard. Finally, he tore his lips away from hers. "Holy fucking shit," he said, pounding into her. "Am I hurting you, baby?"

She shook her head, her lips pressed so tightly together she couldn't speak. Her hands were wrapped around him, grasping onto whatever flesh they landed on, nails digging into him in ecstasy. He kept up his hammering, and reclaimed her mouth. He felt her clenching, the tightest he'd ever felt her get, and he realized that _this_ is what he needed. This is how he had to vent his anger and frustration, by feeling her around him, bringing her to a hard, frenzied release and releasing his own pent-up tension. She screamed into his mouth as she fastened around him so tightly she almost shoved him out, but he, being stronger and more forceful than ever tonight, charged his way in one last time and spilled into her, crying out against her lips, through their seemingly perpetual kiss, and he held onto her as he stilled and rested inside of her, as she shook through the aftershocks of the most violent orgasm she'd ever had.

As he held her up against the wall, a bit of his lost common sense came back to him, and he realized that, maybe he was bit_ too_ rough. She was _still_ shaking, when she would have usually calmed down by now, and he had _destroyed_ all of her clothes. They were at _work_, she _needed_ to leave this room, and that was _impossible_ for her to do with a bra that was in two pieces, a shirt with no buttons and pants that wouldn't stay up. "Baby," he whispered to her, "Are you okay?"

"Still...cumming," she said, as he felt her pulsate around him.

"Holy shit," he said, shocked. "Really?" He kissed her head and her neck and her lips and waited, and when she'd finally stopped vibrating, she looked him in the eyes and leaned her head back against the wall. "Mother of Christ, Elliot," she panted. "What _the fuck_ was _that_?"

"Angry sex." he said with a laugh. "But, not angry-_at-you_ sex," he clarified, kissing her. He let her down, handed her pants and his sweatshirt to her and pulled up his sweatpants. "Are you sure I didn't hurt you?"

She pulled his sweatshirt over hear head as she answered him. "El, I'm sure it'll hurt _like hell_ in the morning, but, baby, damn, that was amazing." She kissed him one last time before they walked back into the squadroom to find out who hurt _their car_.

* * *

Cragen was the only one left in the bullpen when they got there, and he looked almost as tired as they did. He furrowed his brow when he saw Olivia walking, very slowly, toward her desk. "Wow, Olivia, are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said, concentrating on walking straight. "Just really tired."

"We all are," Cragen said, rubbing his eyes. "Jenkins from the garage called up with some information. Your tires were slashed with a military issue serrated knife. He found the tip of the blade stuck in the rear left tire. It must have been the last one that was slashed. There was something in the trunk, too. Small grade explosives. Elliot, if you had started that car, you'd both be in the hospital. As for _who_ it was, there were solid hand prints above each tire where the asshole leaned against the car."

"Good," Elliot said. "I'm not pissed off anymore. You can tell me, I promise not to kill him."

"You're going to smack yourselves for not even considering him," Cragen said. "Andy Eckerson."

Elliot looked downright stupefied. "Of _course_, Liv. He was there, he was irritated, jealous, annoyed. He walked away way too easily," he said, looking at Olivia and trying not to grin at her still-rosy cheeks. "_No_ man would give _you_ up without a real _fight_."

"El, we saw Andy get into his car after he talked to us. We_ watched_ him drive away," Olivia said, surprised.

Cragen's eyes widened. "Which means, he did it _before_ he went over to the van."

"He wanted to talk to you, alone, hoping to get you to go home with _him_ and leave me stranded there," Elliot said, shaking his head with a chuckle. "Stupid son of a bitch. He still has a death wish."

Olivia smirked. "I thought you said you weren't going to kill him."

"I'm not," Elliot said. "But, uh, I think Daddy Cragen might." They looked up at their captain, who had turned a bright shade of red.

"I'm not gonna kill him," Cragen said, snidely. "But, when I'm _done_ with him, he'll wish I _had_." The graying man straightened up and headed for the door, turning his head before he left. "No one hurts _my kids_ and gets away with it," he said with a wicked gleam in his eye as he stormed out of the bullpen, leaving Elliot and Olivia in stunned silence.

"El," Olivia said after a few minutes of staring at the doorway.

Elliot turned to her and took a hold of her hand. "What, baby?"

"Cragen drove us here," she said blankly.

"Yeah," Elliot said. "And he just went after the guy who was gonna blow us up. He called us _his kids_, Liv. I _love_ that man."

"Me, too," she said with a warm smile. "But, how are we gonna get home?"

**A/N: The kids finally spend a day with Liv and El, Olivia chooses her maid of honor and Fin and Casey fight and flirt! Next, if you say so! My birthday is tomorrow, and nothing says "Happy Birthday" like some reviews!?**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! Reviews are better than cake!! So, what is unavoidable this time? How about excruciating pain! Thanks, El!**

**DISCLAIMER: Hey, if I owned Elliot Stabler, I wouldn't let him out of bed! Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. Storyline, dialogue, narrative and originality belong to TStabler©**

Elliot woke up, stretched his arms out and groaned. Someone was missing. He took a moment to adjust his vision and listened closely, and heard the water running. He moaned as he rolled out of the bed and padded groggily to the master bathroom, shedding his clothes along the way. He stepped into the shower and gasped. She was leaning, no, _relying_ on the tiles for support, under the hotter-than-usual spray, and she had a black-and-blue patch on her lower back. That must have been where her back had hit the wall.

"Liv," he said, apologetically, running a hand over her shoulder. "Baby?"

She was silent, still, all she could say was a soft, "Ow."

"Oh, God, honey," he whispered as he stepped closer. He gently turned her around and looked her over, wincing when he saw the evidence of just how hard he _manhandled_ her in the workout room. "Jesus Christ, if you _ever_ let me touch you again, I will be _very_ surprised," he said, feathering a finger over the purple, blue-green and grey areas on her thighs and pelvis. "Baby, I am _so_ sorry."

"_Told_ you it would hurt like hell," she mumbled rolling her head toward him meeting his eyes. She smiled wickedly. "It was so _fucking_ worth it."

He laughed a little, reaching for the shampoo, and he held her tightly, supporting her with his body as he massaged her scalp and washed her hair. "We have the day off, so you don't have to move a muscle."

"That's good, because I _can't_," she said, moaning at his touch. "If we ever _do_ fight, and you ever_ do_ get angry at _me,_ it better be on a _Saturday_. We can only have Elliot's-angry-sex on Saturdays so I don't have to move the next day. I can't work if I can't move."

He chuckled and finished washing her entire body, gently and soothingly, then he carried her back to the bedroom.

* * *

"Why didn't Mom come to Church with us?" Dickie asked.

Elliot looked down at his son as he and the kids filed into the foyer. "Mommy woke up with, uh, a really bad backache and a headache and, uh, cramps."

"Woah, okay, thank you. Didn't have to go there, Dad." Dickie hung his jacket on the low rung of the coat rack and walked into the living room and his eyes lit up. "Mom!" He ran to the couch and jumped up squeezing Olivia.

"Hey, little man. You look so _handsome_," Olivia said.

Elliot walked over and gave her a sweet kiss. "Feeling better?"

"No," she laughed. "But, I couldn't stay in bed _all _day. I was going crazy."

"I have Midol if you need it, Mom," Maureen offered. "And we're not letting you off the couch."

Olivia chuckled. "Um, I'm good on the Midol. Melinda brought over something a little, uh, _stronger_ and I wasn't _planning_ on getting off the couch," she said with a laugh. "Why don't you guys go change and we'll watch movies," she kissed Dickie on the forehead and they all ran upstairs to get out of their Church-goin' clothes.

Elliot looked down with a smile, took off his suit jacket, and plopped on the sofa next to her, wrapping her in his arms. "So, what did _you _do while _we_ were listening to Father Michael's sermon on the _sanctity_ of _marriage_, during which he stared at me _disdainfully_ every time he said the word '_divorce'_?" he said, kissing her forehead.

"Are you _kidding_?" she asked.

"Nope. But, God has _clearly_ forgiven me," he said, kissing Olivia's lips tenderly. "So, how was your morning?"

Olivia bit her lip and looked up at him. "I called Casey."

"Oh? Did you tell her that I went all caveman on you?" he said, nibbling on her ear. "You always _did_ like to brag."

"El, no," she laughed. "I, uh, asked her to be my Maid-of-Honor," she said, waiting for a reaction.

Elliot stared blankly at her for a moment. "You did?"

Olivia nodded. "Is that okay?"

"Baby, that's _perfect_, the women are _you're_ thing, you can have whoever you want. I'm just a bit _surprised._ I thought I would have to pull your arm to get you plan the wedding." He kissed her again, deeply, wishing she wasn't so bruised.

Olivia pushed him away, gently, with a laugh. "And I want Alex, Melinda, Mo, Katie and Lizzie, and your sister if you're up to _forgiving_ her."

"You're _really_ planning?" he asked.

Olivia nodded. "Yeah, I can't _wait_ to marry you, El."

"I love you," he said, kissing her, pulling her close as the children came running down the stairs.

Kathleen groaned. "When I meet a boy, and all I wanna do is kiss him, I'm going to remind you of this moment," she said running to the entertainment center with a DVD.

"Yeah, as long as you're _forty_ when you meet him, I won't have a problem," Elliot said. "What are we watching?"

"Ten Days in Southern Michigan," Lizzie said.

Maureen giggled. "It's about _two cops_ who go undercover in Michigan as a _married couple_ and _actually_ fall in love. But, _he's married_ and she's dating _some lawyer_, so..."

"I'd like to watch the movie," Olivia said.

"Or, ya know, _our life_ on screen," Elliot quipped, quietly, recalling a case he and Olivia were on during their first year that sounded eerily similar to the plot of the movie.

Maureen laughed. "Sorry," she said, pushing play on the remote.

The doorbell rang and Dickie got up. "I'll get it." He ran to the door and opened it, but the people on the other side didn't seem to notice.

"Look, Fin, she is my best friend, and she would not want her future husband to have his bachelor party at a strip joint. Besides, Elliot hasn't _looked _at another woman since he _met_ Olivia. Not even his _wife _at the time, so he won't wanna go."

Fin snorted. "You don't_ know_ Elliot, Novak. _All men_ wanna go to a strip joint the night before they tie the knot."

"Uncle Fin," Dickie said. "Are you gonna yell at Ms. Novak outside all day or are you gonna come inside where it's warm?"

"Hey, kid," Fin said. "Yeah, we're coming in." They stepped inside and Dickie led them to the living room. Dickie took his seat on the floor next to his twin and Casey and Fin sat on the loveseat, which meant they were awfully close.

Olivia looked at them. "Hey, guys. What are you doing here?"

"Elliot, do you or do you not want strippers at your bachelor party?" Casey asked, getting right to the point.

"Wow, _hi_, my kids are _right_ here," Elliot said, waving an arm over the floor.

Casey looked around. "Hi, little Stablers. Now, answer the question."

"Mo, honey, pause the movie. You guys, go raid the kitchen and find all the junk food you can." Maureen hit the button and all four children raced into the million dollar kitchen searching for all things sugary, salty and fatty. "Now," Elliot said leaning forward, "Is _Liv _going to be one of these strippers?"

"She is absolutely not!" Olivia yelled from his lap, slapping him in the arm.

Elliot smirked and kissed the top of her head. "Then, no. No naked, dancing ladies."

"Man, it's gonna be the _last _night you'll be able to _look at_ another naked woman without feeling _guilty!"_ Fin cried.

"No, Fin, that was _three years_ ago. I couldn't look at _Kathy_ without feeling guitly. Face it, Fin, I'm _whipped_ and I'm not ashamed to admit it. _No_ strippers. _I will_, however, leave the room if you wanted to hire one _for yourself_."

"Now, _that's_ the Stabler we all know and love," Fin said. "What are you guys watchin'?" he asked.

"Um, some cop love story that the kids picked-out because it reminds them of us," Olivia said, looking knowingly at Casey.

Casey took one look at the screen and said, "Ten Days In Southern Michigan? Olivia, isn't this the movie you said you thought..."

"Yes! Now shut up!" Olivia yelled, simpering at Elliot.

He grinned smugly at her. "The Connor case?"

"Oh, yeah," she said with a glim nod and a smooch.

"You two are so friggin cute. Aren't they cute?" Casey said, poking at Fin. He quirked an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, a regular pair of Dalmatian puppies."

The kids came back in, arms filled with candy, chips and ice-cream and everyone settled in to watch the rest of the movie. Elliot and Olivia cuddled and kissed throughout the entire movie, which ended with the man leaving his wife for his partner. Olivia nudged Elliot during the final romantic scene, and sent his attention toward Casey and Fin, who had, somehow, ended up snuggling.

"I guess it was _unavoidable_," Olivia whispered to Elliot.

He furrowed his brow. "_What_ was?"

"My Maid-of-Honor and your Best Man realizing that they were _perfect_ for each other," she said quietly, running her hand through his hair and kissing him. "By the way, I can _move_ now. I think, by tonight, I'll be in _perfect_ working condition."

Elliot narrowed his eyes and smirked. "I'll go _easy_ on you, this time."

"You _have_ to," she said. "We have to go to _work_ in the morning." Her mouth dropped and she smacked Elliot, and pointed to the loveseat.

Elliot scoffed. "Holy moly," he whispered. "I don't think he's gonna _want_ the stripper in a few months."

"I don't think she's gonna _let _him _have_ it," Olivia said. They leaned back, cuddling, as they stared at Fin and Casey locked in a soft, sweet, kiss.

**A/N: Next chapter has a few BIG surprises!! REVIEW FOR MY BDAY??? Please and thanks for reading!!! **


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Three big surprises that turn the SVU squad's world upside down, and not **_**all**_** of them are good.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. Storyline, dialogue, narrative and originality belong to TStabler©**

"Elliot, I've already told you, we don't know," Cragen said as he paced back and forth in his office.

Elliot shoved his hands in his pockets to keep from hitting something. "There were no prints, no hairs, nothing? You're telling me this guy was a professional?"

"I didn't say that, Stabler. I just said it _wasn't_ Eckerson. He copped to slashing your tires so you'd be stuck there, but he swears he didn't know there was a bomb in your trunk. He said he loves Olivia and he would _never_ hurt her. He _knew_ that she would _most likely_ choose _you_," Cragen said with a scoff and a shrug.

"Well, who the hell _else_ would wanna hurt us?" Elliot said, leaning against the door to Cragen's office.

The captain narrowed his eyes. "Gee, lemme think. Maybe, the nine-hundred or so bad-guys you two have arrested and convicted over the last three years? Their families? Possibly a vengeful victim of one of the few who got away? Their families? Your psycho ex-wife's new jailbird friends? Trevor Langan?"

"Wow, okay," Elliot said, his eyes wide. "Thanks for making me_ really_ happy I have a high-end security system on my new house, and also really afraid to ever _leave _that house again."

"You asked," Cragen reminded him with a smirk. "The Bomb Squad is working on it, looking for signatures and anything that might tell us where it came from, who made it and if it was really meant for you."

Elliot furrowed his brow. "You mean, it might not have been?"

"Car just like yours was parked on the other end of the street. Registered to a Claude Gautier. Ran him through the system, and a hell of a lot more people would want _him_ dead than you and Olivia."

* * *

"Baby-Girl, I am so sorry, I don't know what happened last night," Fin said, abashedly, to Olivia, who had just gotten off of her cell-phone, and had a very _odd _expression on her face.

She smirked, her eyes sparkling, as she looked at Fin. "I don't really mind, but do you know hard it was to explain it all to Dickie? He saw you guys _fighting_ when you got there, and by the time you _left_ you were more in love than me and Elliot!"

"That's not humanly possible," Munch said. "I _would_ say the government is _using_ the two of you as a ploy to convince us all that true love does, in fact, exist, but...we _are _the government, kind of."

"Uh, thanks, Munch. I think." Olivia chuckled. "Next time, Fin, when the two of you come over, _don't_ play tonsil-hockey in front of my kids!" She said, wagging a finger at Fin. Elliot had been halfway to his desk, and his heart burst when he heard her call the children "hers."

"What about tonsil-football?" Fin joked. "_You two_ kiss in front of 'em all the time!"

"Yes, Fin, _we kiss_, but we _don't_ demonstrate how to find out if your lover has recently _eaten_!" Elliot said with a shocked laugh. "_That_ part of our lives is kept _far _away from our kids. If they _do_ happen to catch us, once in a while, we laugh it off, but you and Casey were like a _sideshow act_! Maureen actually watched _you_ more than the movie. Liv and I only_ noticed_ toward the end, when things had calmed down, so we had no idea it had gotten so, uh..."

"PG-thirteen," Olivia said. "I'm happy for the two of you, really, but I'm _very_ confused as to how it went from zero to ninety in ten seconds." She laughed and shook her head.

"Detective Stabler?" A stout young man shouted in question from the door.

Elliot turned. "Yeah?"

"This is from the lab, and they told me to ask you not to hurt me, I'm only the messenger." The rookie, backing away, flinched as the rest of the squad stifled their laughter.

"I'm not _that_ hot-headed, am I?" He turned to look at his colleagues and was met with silence and pressed-together smiles. "Oh, thanks, guys."

"El, you're a _big _bomb with a short fuse." She leaned over and whispered in his ear, "I have the bruises to prove it."

He cleared his throat and blinked to keep his flash of arousal from being noticed as he opened the envelope. He spent a few moments reading, then took a deep breath and yelled, "Yo, Cap!"

Cragen came out into the squadroom and rushed over, thinking something serious had happened, which it had. "What? What's the matter?"

"Uh, they traced the maker of the bomb by a small drop of blood on the rim of the innner coil of the box. They, uh, missed it the first time. Says here, they ran him through the system and didn't get a hit, but they got a _familial_ record. Cap, I think he was trying to hurt me and Liv to try and hurt _you_," Elliot said, handing the report to his captain. "I didn't know you had a son."

Cragen's eyes widened as he searched his memory, frantically trying to recall who he could possibly have a child with. He looked up at Elliot and said, quietly, "Neither did I."

* * *

Elliot and Olivia walked into their foyer at half-past nine. He had more energy than usual and she could barely keep her eyes open. She had been getting very tired very early lately. Elliot walked over to the end-table next to the couch and pushed the button to listen to their messages. The first one was from Dickie, leaving an "I love you" message for them from his soccer game. The next was Melinda telling them that Lizzie left her glasses case there, and she would send it with Hank to the game. The next was for Olivia from someone named Dr. Feinstein. Before anything else could be heard, though, Olivia ran over with her eyes wide and slammed a hand down on the machine. She lifted up the contraption and frantically pushed the erase button. _She_ wanted to tell him. Not have him hear it from some mechanic voice recorder.

He looked at her and she smiled as if she hadn't just killed the answering machine, flicked a hair out of her eyes and said, "Thought I saw a bug."

He cocked an eyebrow at her and said, "You went to the doctor? When? Why?"

She was silent for a moment and then she pulled him over to the couch, sat him down, and sighed. The kids would be home from the game any minute, she didn't have much time. "I didn't _go_ to the _doctor_, El. I just went downstairs to see Melinda this morning."

He panicked. His eyes widened and he squeezed her hands. "What's wrong? What's the matter?" He lifted his arms, with tears in his eyes, and clutched her head in his hands and said, "Baby, tell me you're not sick!"

"I'm not sick, honey." She tried not to smile but she was just so damn happy and he was so fucking _scared_, she had to put him out of his misery. "El, Melinda didn't want to run any tests on me in the lab at work, so she sent some samples to her friend Sam. _That_ is the guy who called. He left a message, but then he called my cell, so, uh I know what's wrong with me."

"What?" he asked, nervous.

She looked him in the eyes and smiled, her face lighting up. He saw a light in her eyes, a twinkle, a sparkle that could _only_ mean _one _thing. "We need to set a date, and it needs to be some time within the next two months or your_ priest_ is gonna be _glaring_ at you throughout the _entire _wedding," she said with a smile and a chuckle.

Elliot's face went from scared to gloriously happy, and the tears that were threatening to fall out of fear were now falling out of joy. "We're having a baby," he said.

"That's what the doctor _told_ me, but he _could_ be lying just so he can see me in one of those paper gowns," she said with a silly grin.

"We, you and me, we, us, a baby?" He looked at her, with his big, blue eyes, and she nodded, biting her lip and a tear sliding down her cheek. He laughed, pecking a thousand sweet kisses on her lips, cheeks, forehead and anywhere else he could reach. "My baby's having my baby," he said, peering into her eyes. Then, he panicked again. "Oh, fuck! Liv, Saturday! Did I hurt the baby?"

Olivia laughed, and sniffled. "No, El. You didn't hurt the baby. Jesus, you have _four_ kids, did you learn _nothing_?"

"I didn't really like Kathy," he said with a snort. Olivia laughed and her jaw dropped. He continued. "I didn't even _cuddle_ with her when she was pregnant," he said as he kissed her. "You, on the other hand, are going to have to have someone pry me off of you with a fucking crowbar. I can't keep my hands off of you as it is, can you imagine what I'm gonna be like when you're curvy, and glowing, and, my God, you're going to be a Goddess. More of one than you already are."

She laughed as he kissed her neck, it tickled. "El, we can have _all _the sex we want up until I go into labor. Melinda told me that sex is actually a great way to bring on labor if a woman has passed her due date," she said, noting that Elliot's eyes had widened, then narrowed, then he smirked. She laughed.

He ran a hand over her belly and caressed the non-existent bump. "I won't hurt you or Baby Stabler?"

"I promise, the baby is _very well _protected. It's like Fort Knox in there. Besides, right now, he or she is roughly the size of a _tadpole_! Baby Stabler couldn't feel a_ thing_ Saturday, and won't feel you at all for the next seven months." She kissed him tenderly and ran her hands down his face. "Are you really happy about this?"

"Deliriously _ecstatic_," he said, kissing her again. "I want you to find the dress of your dreams, take Alex and Casey and the girls out on Sunday after Church and get bridesmaids dresses, we are going to spend every extra minute at work online and on the phone planning and spending money that we don't have until we..." His plan making was interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone. The kids came barreling through the door, making a ruckus, shouting about the game and how hungry they were, and then Olivia's cell phone rang.

They answered simultaneously, shouting their last names, trying to hear through the commotion, until it got so bad they both turned around and yelled, together, "Hey! I'm on the phone!"

"Sorry," Dickie whispered.

They listened, on their respective cells, and their faces fell at the exact same moment. They snapped their phones shut and, as if they had rehearsed and choreographed this routine a thousand times, rose, together, from the couch.

"Maureen, is Mr. Warner still outside?" Olivia asked.

The teen ran to the door. "Yeah," she said.

"Stop him, go ask him if he can wait with you for a while, please," she said, panic rising in her voice.

Elliot kissed each one of his kids on the forehead. "Sorry, guys, we have to go. There's an emergency at the station house and they need us. You can call and order dinner, you know where Mom keeps the take-out money."

"We love you," Olivia said, giving each child a kiss.

Hank Warner came in with Maureen. "Is everything all right?"

"No," Olivia said, shaking, a trembling hand resting on her belly.

Elliot wrapped an arm around Olivia as they walked through their door. He turned around and whispered to Hank, so he wouldn't upset the kids. "A bomb just went off at the unit. Munch and Cragen were still inside."

**A/N: Uh, so...surprise! If you want chapter 17, you gotta let me know what you thought of 16. There isn't much more left to this saga, but I'm writing three new fics! Review, review, review!! **


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: The aftermath. Sorry I left you hanging, but I'm thrilled you all wanted it.**

**DISCLAIMER:** **All characters and cites of SVU belong to Dick Wolf. Narrative, Plot, Dialogue and anything Original belong to TStabler©**

Their car pulled up to the precinct, but they couldn't get near the lot. The fire engines and squad-cars, ambulances and bomb-squad van were all in the way and crime-scene tape had been put up around the perimeter. Olivia didn't wait for Elliot. She flung open the door, and ran, without closing the door behind her. She flashed her badge and ran under the tape, bolting toward the entrance, a voice stopping her before she got close to the door.

"Olivia," the voice said, weakly.

She spun around, tears in her eyes, and she threw her arms around Cragen, sobbing into his slinged shoulder, as Elliot looked on, tears in his own eyes. Composing herself, because Olivia Benson _doesn't _cry, she wiped her eyes and looked at the man who had become a father to her, and let loose a mild panic. "Oh, my God, your eye! Look at your arm! Where's Munch? What happened to Munch?"

Cragen looked at her with sad eyes.

"No, no. Don, you _need_ to tell me he's _fine_!" she demanded.

"Olivia," Cragen said, in a comforting tone, resting a hand on her shoulder, "They took him to Mercy General. He was sitting on your desk and..."

Olivia's eyes widened. "What?"

"The bombs, two of them, _small_ ones, were in the vents. _Directly_ next to your desks. Yours and Elliot's," Cragen said looking at Elliot, whose eyes had widened, and then squinted.

Elliot grabbed Olivia, and without thinking, one hand latched onto her shoulder and the other wrapped protectively around her stomach. "Jesus Christ," he said. "If we hadn't left..." he stopped, clutched her tighter and rubbed her belly, feeling her hands grip onto his.

"I know," she said. "My God, I know, hun."

Cragen looked at them, judged their stance, considered their body language and shook his head. "Okay, _this_," he said, waving a finger around them, "I can't _hide _from IAB."

They rode to Mercy General in silence, all too afraid to voice their concerns. Cragen's arm was in a sling, and his black eye was swollen, but he relegated himself to the backseat so Elliot and Olivia could be together in the front. Elliot pulled into the emergency room's police lane, with his blue light flashing in the dash, and let the guards outside know that if anyone moved, touched or even _looked_ at the car, he'd arrest them. The three of them ran through the doors, holding up their badges and Cragen stepped up to the desk. "John Munch," he shouted.

"I'm sorry, you need to wait sir," a nurse said.

Olivia grabbed the white-uniformed woman and yanked her collar. "Lady, you tell me where he is, or I swear to God, _you're_ gonna be in the bed next to him for _a week_!"

The nurse's eye's widened and she pointed down the hall. "Ward B," she said.

They ran, fast, down to the curtained off sections of the E.R and found the one labeled 'B', where they were met with Fin, who looked very ill. They all breathed a hefty sigh. "What's going on?" Elliot asked.

"So far, no one's told me shit," Fin said. "I can hear him complainin' from all the way out here, though."

"I can hear you, too, jackass." A doctor slid the curtain open and revealed Munch, lying on a cot, a bandage around his head, back and left arm. There was a gash, stitched up and bandaged, on his right hand and, for the first time, he was without his sunglasses.

Olivia stepped over to him, gently grabbed his hand and smiled. "Hey," she said. "You're okay."

"Yeah," Munch said with a nod. "Just a little bent and broken."

Fin, sniffing and blinking away a tear, this was, after all, _his_ partner, shook his head. "If your ass wasn't so scrawny, you'd have taken the blast better."

"Well, maybe if the government didn't pad so much toxic chemicals and mind-controlling _drugs_ into the food in this country, I would eat more and I wouldn't _be_ this scrawny," Munch quipped.

Elliot rested his hand on Munch's good shoulder. "What happened? I mean, how did you guys get away with..."

Cragen explained. "Munch heard ticking, and, because he's a conspiracy theorist, he assumed something was gonna blow up. I told him I thought he was nuts, but, a second later, the charge nearer to Elliot's desk went off, sending dirt and dust flying. Munch heard the ticking again and leaped off Olivia's desk, throwing me down just as the second one exploded."

Olivia looked from Cragen to Munch in disbelief. "Holy shit."

"I know," Munch said. He shook his head, then got down to business. He looked up at Elliot and Olivia and raised his eyes. "Guy's does the name Simon Marsden mean anything to you?"

Olivia looked up at Elliot and he returned her gaze. They frowned a bit and shook their heads. "No, no bells are ringing," Elliot said. "Why?"

Cragen cleared his throat. "Well, uh, I went to see my, um, _son_. And he admits that he built the bomb in Elliot's trunk, but he's a pyrotechnics engineer for a _special effects_ company. Even if the bomb went off, it would have only been strong enough to _scare_ you. He made it for a guy named Simon Marsden." He rubbed his forehead and took a breath. "David also said that Marsden asked him to make _four_ more, but he refused. Marsden wanted them to cause _actual _damage, and David doesn't _do _that."

"David," Elliot said with a smile. "That's your son's name?"

Cragen nodded. "He knew about me, and he knows that I didn't know about him. His mother, a girl I saw, only briefly, after Marge died, told him the truth. She told him that she never told me about him. We're, uh, we're gonna have lunch tomorrow," he said with a surprised tone in his voice.

"Wow," Olivia said. "So, I kind of have a brother?" She smiled at Cragen and winked, alluding to their joked father-daughter relationship. Cragen smiled back and gave her a hug with his good arm, looked down at her and said, "Yeah, and I kind of have a grandkid."

Fin's eyes widened. "Woah, what?" He looked at Olivia and saw the sparkle in her eyes as she reached for Elliot. Elliot palmed her belly again and the couple smiled.

Munch looked at Elliot and smirked. "There's gonna be another one of you running around? And it's gonna be half-_Benson_? The world is totally _fucked_."

"Thanks," Olivia said sarcastically.

Munch rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on! You two have the same temper, and the same attitude. This kid's saving grace is gonna be his _mother's_ compassion and sympathy, _if_ he inherits it."

Elliot laughed. "Or she."

"You already have four girls and only _one_ boy. The statistics are _leaning_ toward a male, Stabler." Munch poked Olivia in the belly and smiled.

"Oh, yeah. You are absolutely fine, Munch," Olivia said, looking from Munch to Elliot, with her motherly glow already apparent. They said their goodbyes, leaving Fin with Munch, and went back to the 1-6 to assess the damage.

The bullpen was in shambles. There was practically nothing left on the anterior side of the room. Olivia and Elliot's desks were bent and mangled, the metal covering from the vents was halfway across the room, the files and forms had blown clean out of their drawers and had strewn over the squadroom. There was a lighter void in the pattern of black ash on Olivia's desk from where Munch had been sitting when the first bomb went off, and she ran a hand over it, ignoring and fighting the tears.

"Can we just kill him? I mean, do we_ have_ to go through the whole 'arrest, interrogate, jail, trial' bit?" she asked, her grief turning to anger. "_Look_ at this place. Look at my _desk_! Do you know how many _files_, how many _months_ of work and _open_ cases and evidence and witness statements were _in_ those desks!" She kicked the side of the mangled, metal mess. "How much work we're going to have to do _all over_ again? Do you have _any _idea how fucking _cheap _One-P-P is? I'm going to have to spend the rest of my life sitting at a _barbequed_ desk with a permanent impression of Munch's _ass _staring at me," she paused, kicking the side of it again. "And, as a pregnant woman, I'm going to have enough nausea without seeing _that_ every damn day!" She gave it another swift kick, and it collapsed. "Oh, fucking terrific."

She was so busy yelling that she hadn't noticed Elliot and Cragen laughing and clapping. "That's my girl," Elliot said, through his chuckling.

"I'm sorry, when did this become funny?" she spat as she turned around to face them.

"When you went all 'Benson' on your desk," Cragen said.

She kicked the pile of broken pieces again, harder, with a loud grunt.

"What the hell was _that_ one for, baby?" Elliot asked, not laughing anymore.

Olivia turned and looked at Elliot. "Cragen just made _Benson_ an _adjective," _she said crossing her arms. "Munch was right. This kid really _is_ going to have a temper."

* * *

They walked into the foyer quietly, knowing everyone in the house was asleep. Hank Warner was on the couch, and he rose when he heard the door open. "How are they?" he asked, hurriedly.

"They're both fine, thank God. A few broken bones and bruises, but they're okay. Thank you for staying," Elliot said, shaking the man's hand.

Hank simpered. "Elliot, that's what friends are for. If you two _ever_ need _anything_, you know you can call me and Mel." He grabbed his coat and started to leave. "Congratulations, by the way. Melinda told me. Name it Hank," he said with a wink, walking out the door. Olivia set the alarm behind him and turned toward Elliot, who was halfway up the stairs. He jerked his head, encouraging her to follow him.

Upon entering the bedroom, he captured her mouth in a searing kiss. "God, baby," he said into her mouth. He pulled away, slowly, and gazed at her for a moment. He moved over to the hamper and peeled off his shirt and tie, tossing them in as he said, "One hell of a day. First, we find out Cragen's got a kid, then we find out _we've_ got a kid, and then..."

"Could we not talk about that last part?" Olivia asked, getting undressed, tossing her shirt and bra over her shoulder into the hamper.

Elliot laughed lightly. "Yeah. Ya know," he turned to her just as she slipped out of her pants. "Holy fuck, Liv."

"What? What happened?" She looked around and up and tried to find why he was so surprised.

"You," he said, pulling her toward him, "Are one sexy _momma_." He peppered kisses over her face and lips and trailed them as he moved down to her belly. He nuzzled her stomach with the side of his face, and held her close to him. She wrapped her arms around his head, amazed at how emotional they both had gotten at his small, loving gesture. He pressed a small kiss to her belly button, then pushed himself up to his feet, meeting her eyes once again. "I love you," he said. "The_ both_ of you." He caressed her cheek gently, and wrapped an arm around her, leading her to the bed.

"What are you doing? El, I _smell_, I need to shower, it's almost _four_ in the morning..." he pressed a finger to her lips.

"Liv, you said the baby can't feel me." He raised an eyebrow and slid off her panties.

Olivia smirked, and against his finger she said, "That is _so _not the..." he pressed his finger down tighter, shutting her up.

"But, _you_ can," he said, sheathing himself inside of her. They both gasped, and Olivia's eyes teared up. The unexpected intrusion, and his size, causing extreme pleasure with a bit of pain, on top of her being in an emotional state, was too much. Helliot looked deeply into her eyes and said, "And right now, more than anything, I _need _to feel _you_." He replaced his finger with his lips as he began to move, celebrating the life that they had created, and trying to forget that, had they stayed at work, it would have been lost.

**A/N: I have set you up nicely for some twists! Read it? Please review!!**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: So, how will the squad work when their space is a little tight and tensions run high? Elliot and Fin step on each others last nerve.**

**DISCALIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. This story and its dialogue, narrative and plot are exclusively TStabler's©**

"I know it's gonna be a little cramped," Cragen said.

"A little?" Fin spat. "_Baby Stabler_ has more room than we do."

Olivia glared at him. "Did you just call me fat?"

"What?" he asked, shocked. "No, Baby-Girl, I was just sayin' it's tight. We ain't even all here and it feels like we're sardines in a can.

Fin, Elliot, Olivia and Cragen had walked into the space One-P-P had designated the temporary residency of SVU. There was a clean-up crew and maintenance team rebuilding the bullpen, and the Chief of D's had signed off on buying two new desks, so for now, they were operating out of unused office space in the Auto Crime Division. There were only three desks. Cragen needed one, and that meant that the remaining_ four_ detectives had to share _two_ desks. This was gonna be _fun_.

Munch was still in the hospital, and when he got back this was really going to feel a bit _close_. "All I ask," Olivia said, "Is that you all remember to put on _a ton_ of deodorant. It is gonna get _awfully_ hot awfully _fast_ in here, and lately, my sense of smell has been _incredible_."

"It's true," Elliot said. "She found one of Dickie's socks under the couch just by following her nose. Oh! And she made me clean out the entire fridge because there was this container of macaroni and cheese, it was _sealed_ so I don't even know how…"

Fin rolled his eyes. "Okay, man! I'll pile on the Old Spice, all right?" he shouted, a bit snippy.

"Okay," Elliot said, raising his eyes. "Sheesh." He ran a hand down Olivia's back, taking advantage of their close quarters, as they couldn't really be noticed.

Cragen plugged in the phone and put it on his desk, which sat on the far left of the tiny room. "Guys, this is _only_ temporary."

"Yeah," Olivia said. She took a deep breath and her face contorted into a sickly grimace. "I'll be right back," she muttered, running out of the door and bolting toward the bathroom. She'd been gone for quite some time, and they'd gotten a call. Elliot ran to the bathroom to get her.

"Liv?" he asked, knocking on the door.

"No," she said weakly. "Liv's not home right now. Leave your name and a brief message at the sound of the beep. Beeeep," she quipped, sounding a bit queasy and a bit _drugged._

Elliot laughed. "I'm coming in there," he said, pushing the door open. He found her sitting on a closed toilet, pale and woozy, but smirking. He knelt in front of her, brushed the hair out of her face and looked in her eyes. "Hey, baby."

"Hey," she said, her breath minty. He looked down and saw the pint-size bottle of Scope in her hand. "I am now officially pregnant," she said, her eyes sparkling.

Elliot furrowed his brow. "You weren't _officially_ pregnant before?" he chuckled.

"Nope. Morning sickness, flutters, constant cravings for chocolate covered pickles and _you_," she listed, narrowing her eyes on the final word. "Now I _know_. Now it's _real._"

He reached around and grabbed her head, pulling her toward him, gently, kissing her romantically. "Amazing, isn't it?"

She nodded, smiling, and said, "It _so_ is."

"We gotta go. DB on Fiftieth Street. Young girl," he said, rising, taking her hand. "Can you handle it?"

"Hell, yeah," she said, her countenance turning back into that of Bad-Ass Benson immediately. "Baby Stabler isn't gonna keep me from doing my job for another six months, _at least_."

Elliot laughed. "Okay, kid. Let's go."

* * *

Melinda looked up from her position in front of the body and smiled at her colleagues, her friends, and her face lit up at the sight of Olivia. "Oh, wow, Olivia. You can really tell, just by looking, now. You're_ glowing_."

"Thanks," Olivia said, squinting to keep the sun out of her eyes, pulling on a latex glove. "What have we got?"

"Standard shit, really." Melinda peered down at the girl. "She's only fifteen or sixteen, from what I can tell. Visible bruising and signs of sexual trauma, but no fluids. She was choked, most likely a rope or a chain. The pattern is faint, but it's_ there_. I'll know more when I get her back to the morgue," she said, sadly. "And she knew her attacker. No defensive wounds, and things were probably consensual until he starting getting rough. The clothes aren't torn, they're carefully undone."

Elliot sighed. "Thanks, Mel." He knelt down to go through the victim's pockets, but heard Olivia whistle.

"Beat ya," she said, holding up the girl's wallet, her face grave. "She's fifteen. Heather Cordo. School ID's from Trinity Prep, El." She clutched her belly with her free hand.

Elliot's eyes widened. "She went to school with the kids!"

Olivia nodded, growing paler by the moment. She tossed Elliot the wallet. "Which means her _attacker_ probably does, too," she said, turning on her heels and stalking off to find a private place to be sick.

* * *

"Well," Elliot said as they walked back into the microscopic office, "We notified the parents, the school and set up times for interviews with her friends and classmates tomorrow."

Cragen nodded. "Good," he said. "Make any headway on the perp?"

Olivia sighed. "So far, it could have been _the entire_ tenth grade. Heather was very _friendly_."

"Thankfully, none of _our_ kids knew her, so we don't have to involve them," Elliot said, grimacing at the thought of having to interview Maureen about one of her friend's sexual exploits.

Fin was trying to make his way over to the coffee pot, but Elliot was in the way. "Could you, uh, move a little, man?"

"I'm trying, Liv's behind me and the desk is behind her," Elliot explained, shifting and turning.

"Mother fucker, this _bites_," Fin griped, finally squeezing through and pouring a cup of coffee. "Anyone else?"

"I would_ kill_ for a cup, Fin, but, alas," she pointed to her belly. "Caffeine's a no-no."

Fin scoffed. "No one told you to get knocked up," he mumbled under his breath.

"Woah," Elliot yelled. "Fin, don't talk to her like that! Man, you have been a real ass today, what's the problem?"

"Ya know, fuck it. Did you ever think that maybe the squad gettin' blown to bits was somehow because of _the baby_? You know _you two_ were the _real_ target! Now that there's a baby, it could have been the catalyst! You're breakin' _every_ procedural law in the book and gettin' away with it and someone's _pissed_," Fin yelled. "Now we're _stuck_ down here in this _pickle jar_, and it's hot, and crampy and she shouldn't be down here in her condition," he said, his eyes watering.

Elliot smirked. "Aw, Uncle Fin's edgy because he's worried about us and Baby Stabler," he said in a taunting voice.

"Don't make me_ smack_ you," Fin said. "I haven't slept _at all_, because I keep seein' the two of you, at your desks, blowin' to pieces, and then I hear Melinda say, over _your_ dead body, 'she was pregnant' and I…"he stopped, choking on his words.

"Oh, Fin," Olivia said, walking over to him. She hugged him, almost in tears, and said, "We're fine. It's okay. Don't think about the 'what if,' okay? Elliot and I did that, and we spent the whole night, um, _emotional_. I'm fine, he's fine and Baby Stabler's just _fine_. In fact the little_ booger_ is wreaking havoc on my emotions _and_ nervous system," she said, laughing.

Fin chuckled. "Yeah, I know." He rubbed his eyes, sipped his coffee and looked up, over at Elliot. "It's just hard to deal with, knowin' I could have lost my best friends and my, like, niece or nephew," he said, almost a whisper.

Olivia gave him another hug, cheering him up a little, and walked back over to Elliot.

Cragen hung up the phone and sighed. "Okay, Munch has been discharged."

"That's great!" they all said.

"He's perfectly fine, except for his shoulder, his hand and a few burns on his back. He insists he can do everything and doesn't want any special treatment," Cragen said, rubbing his own wounded arm.

"Oh, yeah," Fin muttered. "That'll last for about five minutes. Then it'll be, 'Fin, sharpen my pencil. I'd do it, but I _blew up_.'"

They all chuckled as there was a loud knock on the door. "Is there an Olivia Benson here?"

"That's me," Olivia said.

"Oh." A delivery man stepped through the door, handed her an envelope and a card and nodded. "Have a nice day, detectives." He ran out as fast he came in.

Olivia looked around at the guys, raising an eyebrow. "Okay," she said, opening the envelope. It was large, brown and official looking. It was a full personal background check. On _her_. With a post it note attached to the front that said, "How I found you - S." She dropped it onto the desk she and Elliot were sharing and backed away. The card was next. Her hand trembled, lightly, as she popped open the seal. She slid out the card and gasped. "Holy shit," she cried. "How the hell? Nobody knows, El. We haven't even told the kids, yet."

It was a congratulatory card. A picture of a stork, carrying a bundled baby, and it said, "A Wonderful Miracle for a Wonderful Couple," on the front. She opened it, and her eyes widened. "El," she said, handing him the card. He took it from her, and read the inside. The printed greeting said, "It couldn't have happened to a nicer pair." The handwritten note at the bottom, however, was not so sweet. He read it out loud. "You'll be incredible parents. _In hell_. Love always, Aunt Kathy and Uncle Simon."

Fin dropped his coffee, the mug shattering to bits. Cragen immediately got on the phone, demanding Vice to run down to Rikers and get Kathy Malone out of her cell and into their interrogation room, and follow that up with another search for Simon Marsden, since no one seemed to be able to find him last night. Elliot pulled Olivia toward him, keeping her tight in his arms, and he dropped a kiss to her forehead. "No one's gonna hurt us," he said, sounding so sure. "Especially, not Kathy. We're totally safe, baby."

She looked up at him, peering into his eyes, searching for something, and then she relaxed. The truth, in _his_ eyes, was _unavoidable._ She believed him.

**A/N: Ohh, hey, Kathy! Meet Simon through someone in jail, maybe? Womp, womp! Reviews?? Thoughts??**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: What does Kathy say to Fin and Munch? Dress shopping with Liv and the ladies? Sex on the couch? It's all right here...**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"So, _remind _me again why _Elliot _isn't in here talking to me? Or, what about that little _tramp_, Olivia. I'd like to talk to _her_. Got a few _things_ I'd like to _say_ to her. How does Elliot know that baby's even _his_? Took him _months_ to figure out I was screwing around, maybe he's just as oblivious to _her_ slutty ways," Kathy rambled.

Munch glared at her through his shades, his good arm on his hip. "Are you _for real_?" He looked over at Fin. "She needs to see Huang, _yesterday_."

"I'm _not_ crazy! She took _everything _away from me, that _bitch_." Kathy slammed her cuffed wrists on the table. "I was just trying to take something _away_ from her."

"Her life? Her child? That's a little exreme Ms. Malone!" Fin stepped around to the front of the table. "She didn't take anything you didn't already _throw away_, Kathy. You _cheated_ on Elliot, right? He didn't _touch_ Benson until you two were kaput. You're the one who _lost_ your kids because you were _dumb enough_ to drive under the influence, with them in the car, and then commit a slew of other crimes. Olivia picked up the pieces of the lives you shattered, you deranged loon." He turned around to Munch. "You sure _Stabler's_ side of the family is the one with the mental thing?"

Kathy stood up and went after Fin, but the door swung open and Cragen pushed her into her seat. "Okay," he said. "We're getting _nowhere_. Kathy, how do you know Simon Marsden and what does _he_ have against Olivia and Elliot?"

"Can I talk to _Elliot_?" Kathy asked, raising an eyebrow.

Cragen looked at her, sternly. "You know you can't."

"Fine, I met the bitch's brother when he came to see his mother in jail. _His_ mother, of course, isn't_ her_ mother. Thankfully Serena had the good sense to _die_ before she could meet the demon spawn her whore of daughter is harboring. But, Simon and Olivia, they _do_ have the same _father_," Kathy said with a wicked smirk.

"Son of a bitch," Olivia said, kicking the filing cabinet in the pit as she watched and listened.

Elliot, reaching to grab her and calm her down, paled and flinched. "Liv, come on. Probably not. Kathy's a fucking whacko." He pulled her close to him, stroking the back of her head. "_Baby_, Liv. Calm down, stress is bad for the baby."

"She's _never_ gonna fucking leave us _alone_," Olivia said, nuzzling into his chest.

Elliot chuckled. "Liv, once we find this Marsden guy, she's gonna be in jail for the rest of her life. You know where you're going tomorrow?"

Olivia nodded. "A few stores on Madison, Casey knows a few places on Seventh Avenue. Why are we talking about this?"

"Calmed you down, didn't it?" Elliot asked with a grin.

Cragen came out of the interrogation room, staring at Olivia and Elliot, and he slammed the door behind him. "Benson, I'm sorry. I didn't know. Fin and Munch are gonna pick him up tomorrow. We'll get answers, and maybe we can close your mom's case, too." Olivia nodded, still clutching onto Elliot. "For now, go home. Enjoy your night, and enjoy your day off tomorrow. We'll call you with anything Marsden gives up."

* * *

Church, a family affair, didn't have _any_ effect on Olivia. She'd signed on for the whole _Faith_ thing when she got involved with Elliot, promising him that she'd accept his religion and she had to be a pronounced presence in the church for his priest to even _consider _marrying them. After two hours of listening to the man drone about God and Creation and _fertility_, to which Olivia smirked and snickered, they were released into the wild and proceeded, without the boys, to search for the perfect dress.

"Maureen, don't put that on your head honey, that is not a veil!" Olivia shouted, watching her almost-step-daughter running around with dress crinoline on her head.

"Lizzie," Casey shouted, "Don't touch that! It's going to fall...over....sorry, ma'am!" Casey ran to pick up the mannequin that had fallen into somebody's mother.

Melinda stepped up to Olivia. "You sure you're ready to be a mommy?" she asked.

"A little late to ponder that question, huh?" Olivia said, rubbing her belly.

"I meant to _those_ wild and crazy _girls_, Olivia," Melinda said, pointing to Kathleen who was peeking underneath a bride-to-be's dress.

Olivia laughed. "They're just excited."

"Ms. Benson? We're ready for you," a sweet-sounding redhead said. Olivia tried on a mermaid cut dress first, but found she couldn't really walk in it. "Ew! Next," Lizzie cried. "Mom, you look like someone tied your ankles together," said Maureen.

"Okay," Olivia said with a huff. "I'll go put on something else." She stepped back into the changing room, and changed into a very poufy, princess style, chiffony, bridal gown. "Okay, I _hate_ this. You don't even want to _see_ this," she said, shaking her head.

"Come on, Mom," Kathleen cried. "Yeah, Olivia," Casey said, "We need to see the one's that make you look _bad_, too, or it's not a fair decision."

She stepped out, not even able to push the dress through the doors. "Oh, no," Melinda said, grimacing. "Are you hiding seven _dwarves_ under that thing?" Alex asked.

Everyone laughed as Olivia shuffled back into the dressing room to try on the final dress. The _only_ one in the whole shop she _really_ liked. "Oh, my God," she cried. "I think, with a little hemming and a little tugging, _this_ could be _it_," she said, pushing the door open slowly. All of her girlfriends and the three young girls gasped. Alex sniffled, a tear fell from Casey's eye, Melinda smiled broadly. "Mom," Maureen said, "You look gorgeous! Dad's gonna _cry_."

"Well, then," Olivia said, a tear falling down her cheek as she stood on the platform, looking in the mirror as the assistant pulled out the train for her and started to fit and pin the bodice, "I'm getting married in this dress, so, lady, make it look _good _on me." She wiped her eyes as the whole group of them laughed, and as the straps on her gown were hiked up and pinned, her hand traveled down to her barely-there baby belly, where there were some major flutters going on, and she smiled. "Yeah, little one, I know. Mommy loves it, too."

They spent the rest of the afternoon on Seventh Avenue, choosing the bridesmaids dresses. Since it was going to be a winter wedding, she chose a deep merlot red as the central color. She found the dress in the last store they walked into, and everyone loved it. The red wine, empire waist gown was belted under the bust with a white, silver-trimmed sash. Olivia cried as each one tried on their dress, still refusing to believe that she was going to marry _him_. Then, with the time remaining on their parking meter, they ran into the event florist across the street and Olivia decided on classic merlot-red and white roses, bundled together with the same type of ribbon on the girls' dresses. White, trimmed in sliver, tied in a bow. Elegant, classy, simple and so typically Olivia and Elliot.

* * *

The door was thrown open and the girls ran inside the foyer, shouting about dresses and shoes and flowers. "Mom! Can we show Daddy the pictures of you in your dress that Mo has on her phone?" Kathleen yelled.

"No! Absolutely not," Olivia shouted. "That's like, a _million_ years of bad luck. Go upstairs and finish your homework. _Move_." She chuckled as they groaned and rolled their eyes, marching up the spiral staircase in a single-file line. "Daddy, is this what it was like in the Marines?" Lizzie asked.

"Your mother is _not_ a drill sergeant," Elliot said, scoffing. "Go. Dickie's already up there. Tell him dinner'll be ready in an hour." He laughed as Olivia sat beside him, kicked off her shoes and moaned. "I take it you found your dress?"

She nodded. "Pretty much the most amazing thing _ever_ created. _And _we got _all_ the girls their dresses _and_ we chose the flowers and arrangements, _and _I picked out these amazing centerpieces that they can make in flash, right at the reception hall, with the flowers from the _Church_ so we don't have to spend..._why_ are you looking at me like that?"

He had the most astonished expression on his face. "You planned a whole wedding in _two days_, with _centerpieces_, Liv, and you did it on a _budget_."

She smirked and shrugged. "Would you be _at all_ surprised if I told you _I had_ this wedding planned for _three years_?"

Elliot's mouth dropped. "What?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Even had _four _color schemes picked out, one for each season. I spent _a lot_ of time dreaming about you, Stabler." She leaned over and kissed him softly.

"Liv, you have _no idea_ what _I've_ dreamed about _you_, baby." He pushed her back, pressing into her lips, forcing her to lie back on the couch and he laid gently over her, deepening their kiss. His right hand pressed into the cough cushion beside her, keeping him from squishing her and his left hand ran lightly down her body, sending shivers throughout. "Kids," she mumbled into his mouth. "Home and awake."

"_Parents_," he countered. "Home and _horny_." They chuckled as they kissed and Elliot's hand found the drawstring on Olivia's pants. He tugged it untied, snaked a finger into the waistband to loosen her pants and smiled against her lips as his hand made its way into the cavern of cotton, in search of the buried treasure lying underneath. He tugged, pulled and yanked with one hand, she helped by raising her hips and shimmying out of the black pants, and he chuckled, still kissing her. He unbuckled his belt and shrugged down his jeans, just enough to be able to release himself and move comfortably. He sat on his knees for a moment, grabbed the comforter that was slung over the back of the couch and hurled it around himself, like a cape, and as he lowered himself back onto Olivia, it covered them both. He assumed his prior position, using his left hand, this time, to taunt and tease her already wet and anticipating covered center. She gasped, tossing her head back slightly, pressing her lips together.

"I love you, Liv," he whispered, right into her ear, his hot breath making her body sing. She felt him tug her panties aside gently, teasing. "Tell me you love me," he demanded, peering into her brown orbs.

She looked into his eyes. "You _know_ I love you, more than anything. I _love_ you, El."

"Tell me you _want_ me," he said, returning to ear and nibbling on her lobe, tugging a little harder on her underwear. "God," she cried, softly. "I _always_ want you." She felt the sharp sting and heard the violent rip as he tore the silk away from her body altogether. "Tell me you _need _me, Liv." He pushed the tip of his hardened length into her, looked into her eyes again, and she saw a tear threatening to slide out of one of his blue crystal globes. "Tell me you need me the way that _I_ need _you_."

"Oh, El," she said, snaking her hands around his neck. "I need you, baby. I need you with me, by my side, forever." She ran her hands up and down, toying with his hair. "And so does Baby Stabler," she whispered as she pulled his face closer to hers. The tear fell at the mention of the baby, he slid the hand that had been resting one her hip over to her belly and he pushed his way into her, slowly, deeply, fastening his lips to hers, beginning a slow, caressing, pumping, rhythm and keeping it that way until they both reached a powerful, quiet, intense release.

Elliot slid to the side, so he wouldn't crush Olivia, and gently pulled up her pants. Then his own. He chuckled, leaning his head into Olivia's neck. "We should, uh, order pizza. Dinner was supposed to be ready thirty minutes ago."

**A/N: The wedding's gonna be amazing! What did Simon have to say for himself? What happens when Tucker, from IAB, finds out that Olivia's having a baby? Review, adn you will find out!**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Tucker gets word that Olivia is having a baby. His reaction is very surprising. Until he finds out who the daddy is…then it's downright **_**unbelievable**_**! Simon's excuse for wanting to hurt Olivia and Elliot is shocking, Kathy really is a**_** bitch**_**. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

The close quarters were starting to get on Olivia's nerves. Sharing a desk, being almost in Elliot's _lap_, combined with her raging hormones, drove her bonkers. She wasn't one of those crazy pregnant women who cried at the drop of a hat. She didn't crave peanut-butter pizza at three A.M, nope. All she wanted, every minute, every day, was _Elliot_. His kiss, his touch, his voice, even _smelling_ him would send her over the edge. She leaned into him, as he typed up a DD5 on his half of the cramped desk, took a deep breath and her eyes fluttered shut. He heard her moan lightly in his ear and a hot shiver ran down his spine. He turned his head toward her and cocked an eyebrow, smirking.

"Can I help you?" he asked, snidely. She narrowed her eyes at him. She ran her hand over his leg, skirting it up his thigh. He jumped in his seat. "Liv!"

"What?" she asked, innocently.

Elliot tilted his head as he felt her cup him through his pants. His eyes widened and he grabbed her wrist, tugging her hand away from his already swollen member. "Christ, Liv, we're at work! In the fucking squadroom, at our desk! What's gotten into you?"

"Nothing," she said, her eyes twinkling. "Yet."

Elliot chuckled. "What am I going to do with you?"

"That's what _I'd_ like to know," she purred, leaning over, almost kissing him. A familiar voice spoke from the doorway, interrupting them. "Detective Benson?" She jumped back from Elliot, peering at the wicked man, her right eyebrow arching painfully high. "Sergeant Tucker?"

He walked over and took her hand in his. "How are you feeling? If there's anything any of us at IAB can do to make you more comfortable I…oh, see, _this_ won't do. Stabler, how could you even…get up!" Elliot rose, confused, and Tucker took Elliot's chair away from the desk, pushing it across the room. "There you go, Benson. More room for you and the little one." Tucker crouched down, eye-level with her tummy, and he waved, as if looking through a window. "Hello, in there, you little rookie. You gonna be a cop, like your mommy?"

"Um, Tucker? Could you, maybe,_ not_ talk to my stomach?" Olivia said, looking at the man with the most perplexed expression on her face.

"Oh, uh, sorry. It is _hot_ in here. We're gonna get you some fans." Tucker looked at Cragen, who looked just as amazed as Olivia and Elliot. "Why didn't you tell me she was pregnant when the bombs went off, Don? I would have found you more suitable temporary quarters!"

Cragen blinked and shook his head. "I'm sorry, _what_ did you say? You do know that you're talking about _Olivia Benson_, one half of the team you _hate_," the captain said, his good hand on his hip.

"She's in a delicate condition, Cragen! I'm a hard-ass when she pisses me off, yeah, but I don't _hate_ her, and isn't it my job to make sure she and the kid are well taken care of while at work?" Tucker looked back to Olivia. "Now, I see that sparkly diamond, Detective Benson, so I assume further congratulations are in order. When do we get to meet the lucky husband-and-father-to-be?" the being-way-too-nice man asked.

"Oh," Olivia said. "Ya know, soon…or when Hell freezes over," she said, one hand on her belly and the other being used to prop herself up against the wall.

Tucker laughed. "Okay, I deserve that. I haven't exactly been nice to you. But, you have to see things from my point of view. Here I am, the head of Internal Affairs, and I've got the two of _you_," he pointed to Olivia and Elliot, "Who _outshine_ everyone in the district. You push people's buttons, break rules, and sometimes you break _bones_. You two are so damn good that everyone always turns the other cheek. I got a little annoyed, so I came down hard on you the last couple of times." Tucker sidled over to the mini-fridge and pulled out two bottles of water. He handed one to Olivia, then opened the second one, taking a sip from it. "Then, you're like the closest partners the city has ever seen. You know more about each other after three years than I know about my wife and I've been married to her for nine! I was trying to _protect_ the two of you, believe it or not. I thought you were getting _too _close. In fact, if I didn't know better I'd say that it _is_ Stabler's baby." Tucker laughed, heartily. But, when no one else even cracked a smile, he stopped. He turned to face Elliot, and his face grew serious. "Holy shit." Tucker, surprisingly, smiled, and a slight light glimmered in his eyes.

"Hell just froze over," Elliot said, holding out his hand to shake Tuckers. "Hi. I'm the husband-and-father-to-be. Nice to meet you."

Before Tucker could respond, Munch and Fin ran in from the interrogation room. They had been with Simon Marsden, and they looked shocked, confused and slightly relieved. "Baby-Girl," Fin said. "You ain't gonna believe this!"

Munch raised an eyebrow at Tucker, but Olivia gave him a look that said "Don't ask," and he explained, holding up a file and a written statement. "Simon knew _all_ about you, Olivia. He wanted to find a way to contact you, but he didn't know how. He though it would be awkward. Ya know? 'Hi. My name's Simon. My father raped your mother. Wanna grab a drink?' He's always wanted to be a part of your life."

"So, he tried to kill me?" Olivia asked.

Fin shook his head. "No, listen. He met Kathy by chance, heard your name in a conversation she was having with Natalie at the same time he was talkin' to his mom. He told her who he was, then asked her how she knew you, and she said that she was your_ nurse_. She said that you were _raped_, Olivia. Told Simon _that's_ how you got pregnant."

"_What_?" Elliot yelled in anger and shock. "I'll _kill_ her."

Tucker nodded. "I'll help you." Elliot snapped his head toward Tucker and was shocked to see the man dripping with anger, too.

"Wait," Munch said. "Here's the best part. Kathy told her _you_ did it, Elliot. Simon told us all about the bombs. The one on Benson's side of the desk would have done severe damage, but the one on Elliot's…it was designed to _kill_ him." He looked directly at Elliot, who had moved over to Olivia and wrapped her in his arms. "Simon wanted _you_ dead, Stabler. Not Olivia. He wanted the _baby _dead, so Olivia wouldn't feel the same way about _her_ child that Serena felt about her."

Fin rubbed a hand over his forehead. "According to Marsden's statement, he was just defending and protecting his sister, in a _really _fucked _up_ way. He also claims he knew nothing about the card Kathy sent. That was all her. He's still going to jail, for a pretty long time, and he understands why." He rested a hand on Olivia's shoulder. "He wants to see you, Baby-Girl, now that he knows the truth. Both of you. He wants to apologize."

"Tell him not to hold his breath," Olivia said, clutching one of Elliot's hands tightly in hers and holding it to her belly. Elliot responded by placing a gentle, loving kiss to the top of her head, his eyes closing at the contact, and for a brief moment, they'd forgotten Tucker was still in the room. Ed, silent, watched the pair during the whole ordeal. Their body language, their closeness, and the way they took comfort in each other. That was what made good partners _great_. He saw the way the love and emotion poured out of them in each glance, touch and gesture. That's what made great lovers _incredible_. He was amazed as he spoke.

"Well," came the Sergeant's voice, "I will personally see that Ms. Malone loses all visitation and recreation privileges at Rikers, and that her sentence is properly and adequately adjusted. Elliot, I have to admit, you really could have picked a better first wife, but sure as hell couldn't have chosen a better second one. Speaking of the two of you," he said stepping over to Olivia and Elliot, "It's bureau policy to…"

"I know," Elliot said, sighing and looking toward him. He glanced down at Olivia, who looked up at him sadly. "So, what do you want Tucker? A transfer request or a partner change? I don't want Liv going _any_where, so I'll have the forms on Cragen's desk as soon as…"

"Actually," Tucker said, interrupting. "I was going to say that it's bureau policy to pay for half of the reception, but since you're _both_ officers we could cover the whole thing."

Olivia looked up at him, astonished. "But, you have been looking for an excuse to split us up for…"

"For my _own _selfish, bitter, grudging reasons, Benson. I can't split up the hardest working team in the NYPD _now_. You two _need _each other. You've made that perfectly clear." He looked at Elliot, smirked, then looked back at Olivia. "Besides, who _else_ would put up with _him_?"

* * *

Elliot saw her standing by the sink, washing dishes, even though they had a perfectly fine, thousand-dollar dishwasher. That meant she still wasn't used to her new life. No matter how much she told him she was. Part of her was still in that tiny, one-bedroom apartment that didn't have any heat. The one with the tiny sink. He chuckled as he remembered that night, almost four months ago. He padded up behind her, softly, and wrapped his arms around her. She sighed, contented, scooting back into his embrace as she washed out the sliver pot in her hands, and rubbed up against him.

"Hey, beautiful," he said into her hair. She turned her head to the side, only slightly. "Hello, handsome."

"You know, there's a machine to your left that will do that for you," he said, picking her hand up out of the soapy water and forcing her to drop the sponge. He spun her around and pressed himself into her. She was already crazy with need for him, now he was just torturing her. "Oh, hell," she said, peering into his eyes. "I forgot we had a dishwasher."

Elliot smiled. "Liv, you amazing woman," he said, kissing her, "How do you forget something like that?" Olivia chuckled. "We've been a bit _busy_, El." She ran her hand up his arm, and he shuddered at the coldness of her skin. "So, how about Tucker, huh? He waved and cooed to my stomach, and didn't split us up," Olivia said with a laugh.

"And then _he_ offered to pay for the whole reception. I checked. IAB doesn't usually do that. I think Tucker might actually like us, and he's afraid to admit it," Elliot said, bending his head to nibble on Olivia's neck. She looped her arms around his waist and pulled him closer, luxuriating in the way his hardness hit her right where she so hysterically needed it. "Shit," she cried, gasping, as her eyes fluttered shut and her head dropped. She picked her head back up, slowly, looking into his eyes. "Where are the kids?" she asked, arching her eyebrow, smirking maniacally.

He smirked back, grinding his hips a bit, watching her face shift in pleasure as he was giving her what she needed. "In the den, watching a movie in complete, cinematic surround sound."

"El," Olivia said, grasping his sweatpants and pulling them down around his waist. "I need you. Now."

Elliot's eyes went dark, wide, and he smiled. "Gee, Liv, I couldn't tell." He worked her flannel pants down to just below her butt and slid two fingers up her slit, testing her readiness and he groaned. "Holy fuck, Liv. That's…"

"Yeah," she nodded. "All goddamn day, Elliot. It got worse every time you were anywhere _near_ me. This baby's making me one lustful girl and _you_ are a walking aphrodisiac." She lifted one leg, wrapping it around his waist and pulled him to her, sucking air through her clenched teeth as he impaled her, roughly.

"Liv, baby, slow down," he said, trying to control himself as much as he was trying to control her.

"El, I don't want slow right now. I don't want soft, either." She leaped into his arms and kissed him roughly, using his body to support her as she set a frantic, hard, rhythm. "God," Elliot growled. "Remember what happened last time? It's not Saturday, baby." He shuffled them up against the wall, trying to slow her down.

She bit his bottom lip, looked into his eyes, and said, "Don't argue with a pregnant woman, Stabler. If I can't move in the morning, I'll do everyone's paperwork, all day, and I'll blame morning sickness and a mood swing." She grabbed his bare bottom and squeezed, earning a surprised yelp from him."Now, move!"

"Wow," he said. "How many kids do you want, Liv?" He increased his pace, giving her everything she wanted and more. "As many as we make, El." She cried and moaned as he found her pulse on her neck and bit, suckling. She continued, "As you always say, it's in God's hands. Why?" She placed kisses and nibbles up his shoulder and on his neck, hearing a low moan from him. "Because," he said. "I _really_ love you when you're pregnant." They both let out soft chuckles as they sped up, moving harder, faster, in perfect sync with each other, crying only each other's names when they came, together.

* * *

"Another round, Ed?"

"No, Charlie," Tucker said, slapping a twenty-dollar bill down on the bar. He peered up at the young bartender. "Hey, Charlie. What would you do if you found out that your worst fear had been realized, but you were actually happy about it?"

The young beer-slinger looked at Ed, puzzled. "See a therapist. Fast."

Tucker laughed. "Ah, Charlie. I tried to keep him from getting too close to her, because part of me thought that they'd get each other killed, but today I saw how much they really do love each other, and I can't stand in the way of that. I think they really would die for each other. Hell, I read the reports on how they almost have."

"Oh, are we talking about Elliot and Olivia?" Charlie asked.

Tucker nodded. "She's pregnant. They're getting married," he said, a tear in his eye.

"Wow! Ed, you're gonna be a grandpa! Well, again. How many does this make?" Charlie wiped the counter in front of Ed.

"Five," Tucker said, chugging the last of his drink. "My son's gonna have his fifth kid. I've never even really met the first four, Charlie."

Charlie paused, threw down his towel and looked at Tucker. "When are you going to tell that young man you're his father?"

"Oh, ya know," he said, remembering Olivia's words. "Soon. Or, when Hell freezes over." Tucker nodded sadly to Charlie, placed the glass on the bar, and walked out into the cold November evening.

**A/N: Say WHAT? That explains his reaction. Also, in case it isn't clear by the end of the story, Tucker's _older _than you think he is. =) Reviews!?!? **


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: The squad returns to its floor, complete with shiny, new, whole desks! Is Tucker going to tell Elliot? What's he going to say? Olivia picks a baby name that surprises Elliot...but, really, it was unavoidable. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"Holy shiny squadroom, Batman!" Munch exclaimed, walking into the bullpen. The walls were freshly painted, stark white. Everyone had a new desk, not just Olivia and Elliot. The coffee corner was now fully stocked, not only with coffee and milk, but with fresh fruit, juice, water and decaffeinated tea, all labeled with Olivia's name, and a note from Tucker declaring anyone else who touched "her shit" would die a horrible death. The floor was retiled, there were new filing cabinets and even the double-sided-mirrors in the interrogation rooms had been replaced.

"You keep getting weirder and weirder," Elliot said, in response to Munch's comment. "And what the hell is _up _with Tucker trying to take care of my wife and kid?"

"Wife?" Fin asked, raising an eyebrow.

Elliot snapped his head toward him. "What?" Fin chuckled, Olivia looked shocked, but had a smile on her face. She enjoyed that little slip of the tongue. "You just called Olivia your wife," Munch said.

"Well, in two weeks she will be. Maybe my brain's already _there_, ya know?" Elliot smiled at his woman, glowing and beautiful, and he winked at her. "Seriously, Munch, you're the conspiracy guy. Do you think the government got a hold of Tucker and brainwashed him? Maybe he's a pod person, like in that _Bodysnatcher_ movie. He is being really..._nice_." He walked over to the table grabbed an orange and a bottle of water and put them on Olivia's desk, kissed her on the forehead and sat down in his seat.

"Great," Olivia said, watching Elliot suspiciously. "Now I have to deal with you being extra attentive and forcing vitamins down my throat at work, too. Remind me to thank Tucker. What says _'thank you'_ more, my foot up his ass or my pen in his eye?"

The group chuckled. "Liv, baby, I just wanna take care of you. That's my job. Not fucking Tucker's, that's for damn sure. That man is up to something, Liv. I know it. He's trying to sweeten us up, make us like him, then he's gonna drop some kind of bomb on us."

"Please," Munch said, sitting in his new desk. "Don't say _'bomb'_ in here."

Cragen stepped out of his office, his shoulder out of its sling and he folded his arms for the first time in a week. It felt great. "Benson, Stabler. Officer involved DV on Forty-Fifth. Children involved," he said, handing them a pink slip of paper. "Handle it delicately."

They rolled up to the address in a maroon sedan, their blue light flashing on the dash, and they stepped out of the car. On their way up to the apartment door, they ran into Tucker. "Oh, hide me," Olivia said. "He's gonna _sing_ to the baby, or make me eat _spinach_." She hid herself halfway behind Elliot as he chuckled. "Ed," Elliot said, "What's the story here?"

"Oh, um, Vicars from the 2-9 came home drunk, hit his wife a few times after she confronted him, then when his son tried to stop him..."

"Okay," Elliot said, instantly picturing a scene from his own childhood, "We get the picture. We need to get the story from the wife and kid, so, could you maybe, be a dear, and get _out _of the _way_?"

"Hey, Stabler, do you think Benson can handle this on her own for a few minutes?" Tucker asked, putting his hands in his pockets.

"No," Elliot said. "Whatever you're gonna yell at me for can wait till we're done. I'm not going to let my pregnant partner go _anywhere_ alone." He wrapped an arm around Olivia's back and walked with her into the building.

* * *

Tucker had been pacing back and forth for over an hour, glancing at his watch every three minutes. "Fucking hell, how long does it take to get a few people to talk about what their psycho father did?"

"It took Liv four years to get it out of _me_," Elliot said, coming back out of the apartment. "We got a full statement from the son, only a partial one from the wife and Vicars, God help him, tried to hit Liv. She's bringing him out now."

Olivia came out, smirking and yelling at the man she was holding, in cuffs that she made sure were too tight, his nose crooked and bloodied. "What was that, Vicars? What did you just call me? I'm a _bitch_?" She shoved him roughly into a squad car, accidentally hitting his head on the hood. "Let's see how long it takes for _you _tobecome one at Rikers." She slammed the door and was stunned when she turned to see Tucker in her face.

"Did he hurt you? Did he hurt the baby? I'll kill him," Tucker yelled.

Olivia, confused, said "No, he didn't hurt me, he didn't even _touch_ me. What has gotten _into _you, Tucker?" Ed spun around. "I'm worried about my family, _okay_?" he spat, running a hand through his hair. "So, go fawn all over _them_!" Olivia yelled. She moved to walk away, when Tucker screamed, "_I am_!"

Olivia and Elliot gaped at him. "I'm sorry, _what_?" Elliot gasped. "When, in the last _three years_, did you start considering _us_ family?"

"Fuck, Elliot. _You've_ been my family for thirty!" Tucker sighed, stepping toward the two detectives. "We need to talk. There's something you need to know."

* * *

Elliot and Olivia followed Tucker into the café across the street, nervous, confused and a little pissed. Ed led them to a booth in the back, scooted in on one side, and gestured for the couple to take the other side. "I'm going to talk, I need you to listen. _Please_, do not interrupt me, don't say _anything_ until I'm done. Can you do that?"

"Yeah," Elliot nodded. "I'm not speaking for Liv, though. Ow!" She elbowed him in the ribs, and he chuckled, placing a soft kiss to the top of her head. Tucker looked on with a smile. They were so happy togther.

"Okay. Elliot, I knew your father, Joe. We were in the same unit for a while, when I was just a rookie. He used to bring your mother to all of the balls and banquets and he told me she loved getting dressed up, made her feel like 'a _princess'_ he used to say." Tucker watched as Elliot nodded. "Well, one year, the night before the Black and White Ball, the one you two have been going to together _'as partners'_ for the last three years, Joe got a call. The case was rough, hard, serial killer running loose and they didn't have a lot of time before he hit again, so he had to stay at work. He didn't want to let your mother down, so he asked if I would take her."

Elliot held up a hand. "Okay, so you did my dad a favor. That doesn't make us fam..." Tucker glared at him and said, "Don't interrupt!" Elliot nodded and put his hand down, wrapping around Olivia instead.

Tucker went on. "I told him I would. I picked Bernie up at seven and she looked _beautiful_. Your mother was gorgeous, Elliot. We spent a lot of time talking, dancing, having a really nice time. She told me things...about your father. What he used to do to her, and your sister, and my heart broke for her. It occurred to me, then, that she needed to be kissed, so I kissed her."

"You kissed my mother? Who did my father try to kill first, you or her?" Eliot said, running a hand through his hair.

"Elliot, please, this is hard enough. She didn't turn away from me, or stop me, or slap me, and it felt so...perfect. That night, when I dropped her off, she invited me inside for coffee. We had coffee, talked a little more, and I can't remember how but we ended up..."

"Holy shit! You slept with my mother!" Elliot yelled. The people in the tables next to them stopped taking and turned around. Olivia looked up and said, "Oh, we're actors! Just rehearsing. Go about your business." She clenched Elliot's hand tightly as they watched Tucker's head drop.

"Christ, Elliot. Yes, I did. She told me, in the morning, that she'd never felt so _loved _before. Your mother and I had a long affair, Elliot. For almost two years. Your father never suspected a damn thing, but when she got pregnant, he found out. Bernie called me, told me that Joe knew about the baby. He _knew_ and he was making her keep it. He wanted me out of their lives, of course, he wanted to raise it as his own. He was just going to let everything go, forgive her, but he promised that he would make the _kid's_ life hell._ You_ were that kid. She sent me letters, and pictures, and everything she could from your life. An extra copy of your senior yearbook, a program from your Marine Corps graduation, wedding pictures, photos of the kids as they arrived, and then when you walked into One-P-P five years ago in your uniform, I didn't know what to do. I wanted to tell you, then, but I chickened out. A year later, you transferred into SVU and I watched you pummel the shit out of perps and your temper flared just like Joe's and I kicked myself everyday for letting _him_ raise you, because it's not in your genes to be that _angry_, Elliot, that was _learned_ from _him_. Then when Benson came along, she calmed you down, _a little_ at least, and I saw what was happening. I wasn't about to let _my son_ put his career at risk by falling in love with his partner, so I tried like hell to screw with you guys. I see, now, that even fucking _bombs_ can't blow you two apart." Tucker wiped his eyes, he had been crying, and he sniffled. "You can talk now."

"_You're_ my father? And you _knew_...my _whole_ life, you knew? My mother cheated on my father, that's hard enough to stomach, but to find out that _you_ are my father...God, that was almost illegal! What were you, like, _twenty_?"

"Twenty_-five_, Elliot. My age had _nothing_ to do with it, I fell in love with your mother, you weren't a product of a one-night-stand, or a meaningless fling. I really did love Bernie. And I really do love you. And your kids, and Olivia and that new little life she's got inside of her. I had to stay away, Elliot, your father would have..."

"Killed us all, I know." Elliot was shaking, he didn't know what to do, say, or even think. He just got up and ran out of the coffee shop. "El!" Olivia called. She got up, too, and looked down at Tucker. "I'll talk to him," she sighed. "Thank you for telling him." She rested a hand on his shoulder and squeezed, then ran after Elliot.

* * *

He was still lying awake in their bed at three A.M. She was awake because she couldn't sleep if he wasn't sleeping. They were both naked, entangled, staring at the ceiling. She had been tracing the outline of his tattoo for the last ten minutes, he blinked. "That feels good," he whispered. "Really good."

"I have magic powers, didn't you know?" she joked in a similar whisper. Then she grew serious. "Are you all right? Your life was just ripped out from under you like a cheap rug. I know what that feels like, and it hurts."

"I'm fine. Part of me knew my father _wasn't_ my father, Liv. He used to mumble something about 'the damn kid not even being his' every once in a while. Pretty good _hint_," Elliot said, trying to get closer to Olivia, which wasn't possible; they were already wound around each other tightly. "I just never imagined it would be _Tucker_. I think I'm more pissed off about that than I am about anything else. I can't be mad at my mother, because my father treated her like _shit_ and she found someone who, _he claims_, loved her. It would make me a _hypocrite_ to criticize her for cheating, because every minute, for three years, I wanted to do the same damn thing. I heard his reasons, I heard his story, and for some strange reason, I believe him. I'm just pissed off he didn't tell me sooner. He knew I had kids. He's got _photos_ of _our_ kids, Liv, and he's only met them, in passing, in the hallway at work. We've got another one on the way, and he seems _thrilled_ to actually be _able_ to see this one, from the beginning, grow up."

Olivia looked up at him, still running her finger along his tattoo. "What are you saying, El?"

Elliot pulled her back, directly on top of him, and he said, "I'm saying that I think I'm gonna _let him_ do it. Kids are supposed to have _two_ grandfathers who _love_ them, right? Now, _our_ baby will. Grandpa Don and Grandpa...um..._Ed_. And, tomorrow, I'm gonna take a few hours of personal time in the morning, and get to know Tucker. As much as I _hate_ him, he's always been nicer to me than Joe Stabler. I mean, come on, the man named me 'Elliot' who _does_ that to their kid?"

Olivia peered down at him, her brown eyes glittering and sparkling. She bent her head and lightly kissed him. "I was hoping _we_ would," she whispered. "_If_ it's a boy. Not that the world really _needs_ another Elliot Stabler," she quipped. He looked up at her and smiled, his eyes wet and shimmering, but he wouldn't cry. Not tonight. he kissed her, nibbling lightly on her lips. "If it's a girl, can we name her Olivia?"

She laughed. "Not a chance in hell," she said. She wrapped herself around him snuggling close, resting her head in the crook of his neck. Elliot chuckled as her ran his arm lovingly down Olivia's back. They slept, finally, safe, for the moment, from the unavoidable incident that would be heading their way in the morning.

**A/N: Aw, Tucker. Such a nice guy...really? What's coming for Liv and El? Reviews!?!? **


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: The new case surprises Olivia and Elliot, and so does something _else_. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"We shouldn't tell Benson about this," Munch said.

Fin nodded. "We don't want to stress her out, and I don't wanna see Baby-Girl pissed when she's pregnant," he said with a shudder as he pictured a demonic Olivia.

"We _have_ to tell her," Cragen said. "This is her _family_ we're dealing with. I know this case is cold, but we never had any cause to treat it like a homicide until now. Fin, meet Forrester from Homicide down at Rikers and talk to Marsden. if he won't talk there, bring him here. Munch, go see Warner. Find out if the autopsy report went through her and if she can access it. Olivia deserves the truth."

Olivia came in at that moment, confused, with Elliot. "The truth about what?"

"Oh, good. You're both here," Cragen said. "Well, yeah. You would both come in together wouldn't you? Um, we went over Simon Marsden's statement. Olivia, he's been _protecting_ you for a long time."

Elliot's eyes angled and he wrapped his arms around her. "Explain," he said, coldly.

"Relax, Elliot. Marsden didn't know _where_ you were until he talked to Kathy, but he followed the papers, watched the news, kept up with your cases. And whenever he ran into someone who he _knew_ had hurt you in any way, he felt it was his responsibility to hurt them back. You remember Dean Porter's car accident? The one he got into when he tried to leave New York after he tried to get between you and Elliot, wrecked your case, and you two broke up?"

"Uh, yeah," Olivia said, furrowing her brow. "Porter drove into the side of a building. Police report said he swerved to miss a cat."

"Marsden cut his brakes," Cragen said. He sighed and scratched his head. "We also, now, have reason to believe that he may have had something to do with your mother's..."

"Oh, no! _That_ was an accident. She fell down a flight of steps. She was drunk. The cop told me what happened," Olivia said, more angry than afraid. "You were there!"

Cragen rested a hand on her shoulder as Elliot's comforting grip on her tightened. "Olivia, the _way _that she died, that remains the same. Yes, she _was _drunk. But, she may have been pushed."

Elliot looked from Olivia to Cragen. "And you think this Simon guy was the one who did the pushing?"

Cragen nodded. "I'm sorry, Olivia." Olivia shrugged, biting her bottom lip, and ran her hands over her belly. "Look, just, um, find out what happened, okay? It's not going to change the fact that if she was sober she'd still be alive. Whether she was pushed or she fell, she's dead because she'd been drinking for six straight _hours_, so it really doesn't _fucking_ matter," she stopped as she brought her hand to her mouth. She shoved her way out of Elliot's arms and bolted from the bullpen, running into the bathroom.

Elliot ran in after her, just in time to hold her hair back, the way he did at home. "Baby," he said, rubbing her lower back. "I don't know what to say."

"How about, 'Gee, Liv, that's disgusting'?" she quipped.

Elliot laughed. "Not about your morning sickness, pumpkin." He stopped laughing and ran his hands up to her shoulders, massaging gently. "About Simon. Your mother. I'm completely at a loss here," he said. Olivia flushed the toilet and rose to her feet. Elliot followed her to the sink and waited for her to rinse her mouth with water, then mouthwash. "Don't say _anything_, please, El. I don't wanna hear it, anyway."

"Okay," he said, tilting his head. "We have to go the doctor's at four." Elliot smirked, raised an eyebrow and pulled her close to him. "We get to see our baby, and listen to his or her heartbeat, for the first time, and then I am taking you out for dinner. Just you and me, the kids are hanging out at Melinda's, and we will have the _whole_ night to ourselves."

Olivia smiled, softly. "You certainly know what to say to cheer me up," she whispered as she nuzzled into his chest.

"I love you. It's my job to know how to do that," he said, kissing the top of her head.

* * *

"Okay," the technician said. "This is going to be a little cold. How far along are you?" she asked as she squirted clear gel on Olivia's tiny belly.

"Almost twelve weeks," Olivia said. She grabbed Elliot's hand, and he kissed her temple, stroked back her hair and leaned down to her, ready to see the little life inside of her on the screen.

"Good. So, this is your first ultrasound, then? First time parents?" the woman asked, turning on the machine.

"We have four at home," Olivia said without thinking. The nurse chuckled as she rested the scanner on Olivia's stomach. "Wow. You don't look like you've had four kids," she said. "You're in incredible shape."

Elliot smiled. "They're her _step_children," he said. "_This_ little miracle is her first..._our _first child, together. So, yes. _We_ are first time parents," he explained, kissing Olivia again.

Olivia and Elliot gasped, tears beginning to roll down both of their cheeks as they watched the monitor. "Oh, there you are! Look at you, you cute little thing," Elliot proclaimed.

"Oh, my God, Elliot. That's our baby!" Olivia cried.

"Yes, it is," the technician said. "See that?" she asked pointing to a blinking blob. "That's the baby's heart. And if I turn this knob..."

"Oh, my God!" Olivia cried. "El, that's our baby's heartbeat! It sounds so..."

"Strong," Elliot said. "Yes, it does." He laughed through his tears and wiped hers away. "How could we_ not_ make a strong baby, Liv? Look at us," he joked. "You are the strongest person I know, and you give _me_ strength. This baby is gonna be one _tough_ Stabler."

Olivia laughed and kissed him, thanked the technician and they took several printed sonogram photos with them when they left. Olivia held one of the photos in her hand, staring at it the whole way to the restaurant. "Look at the little tiny hand, and the little blurry face. It's a _real _baby, El."

Elliot laughed. "Really, Liv? I had no idea." He reached over and took her hand, stroking her fingers with his thumb. "I am so _excited_ about this little one, and I'm _incredibly_ excited about our wedding. I'm not nervous, at all. It's just so..._right_, ya know?"

"I know, El. Of course, I don't know if I'm nervous, since the fluttering in my stomach is probably, I don't know, the baby!" she laughed, still looking atthe sonogram.

"Hey, baby. Did I tell you Tucker's putting the entire reception on his _personal_ credit-card? Says he's making up for thirty years of missed birthdays." Elliot shook his head and chuckled.

"I'm glad you talked to him this morning, El. I'm a little surprised, though, at your reaction. You're taking this whole thing very well," Olivia said, linking her fingers through Elliot's

"I told you, Liv, finding out Joe Stabler wasn't my father didn't come as a shock, and I'm glad the bastard's blood isn't running through my veins. I know Ed Tucker, and we've had a lot of time to talk, and he has this whole box of things my mother sent him. Liv, he has our kids pictures in _frames_, the man honestly _wanted _to be there for me. He deserves a chance to do it, now, right? Besides, I'm a little preoccupied with marrying my best friend and her having my baby to get all worked up over this," Elliot explained, pulling into the parking lot of the restaurant.

He got out of the car, walked around to her side and opened the door for her, taking her hand and leading her out. "Why, thank you, partner of mine."

"You are very welcome. You don't know how much I love taking you out and show...oh, what, now?" He pulled his ringing cell out of his pocket. "Stabler," he barked. "Oh. Oh, wow. Um, thank you, Fin. Yeah, you call Casey and do what you need to do. There's really no need to...she didn't see anything, she wasn't even there! Oh, that's great, leave it to Langan. All right, we're coming in. No, we were about to. We'll order pizza or something." Elliot sighed as he hung up the phone.

"What? Where are we going?" Olivia asked opening the car door.

Elliot sighed. "Simon Marsden, uh, confessed. He pushed your mom down the stairs, baby. Langan is using the 'defense-of-a-third-party' slide, and you have to go talk to him about life with your mother. He's trying to convince the judge that it was justifiable homicide."

Olivia sighed and narrowed her eyes. "It _was_, El."

* * *

"No, I told you, I need a _large_ olive and onion, a medium _pepperoni_, one extra-_cheese_ and one hot peppers and _pickles_. Yes, as a matter of fact, I _am_ pregnant," Olivia snapped. "Thank you!" She slammed the phone down and chuckled. "I hate that kid!"

"At least he'll stop asking you now. How'd it go with Langan?" Elliot asked, sitting on her desk.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "You know him, El. Unsympathetic bastard, still hung up on me, only backed off when I almost threw up on his shoes."

"It's eight o'clock, baby. You've never been sick past noon," Elliot said with a smirk.

"_Langan_ doesn't know that," Olivia replied with a slick grin and a wink. "So, you met Marsden, huh?"

Eliot nodded. "He seems normal, aside from the homicidal tendencies and obsessive-protective streak," he said with a shrug and a laugh. "He apologized, profusely. Told me that he was only going by what he had heard from Kathy, and he shouldn't have believed her because he _knew_ you and I were together. He's been watching you, Liv. _Us_."

"For how long?" Olivia said, rising from her chair. "How closely?" Elliot pulled her close to him. "For the last few months, and not close. At least, not close enough for it to be stalking. He only knows that we moved in together, and that we're engaged. Kathy gave him our address. Guess when she bumped into you, she committed it to memory. He says she told him I came home drunk one night and raped you, and then he started driving by the house. He swears he only drove by a few times, and he's never seen the kids," Elliot kissed her and caressed her. "He wants to meet you, baby. I told him you'd probably say no, but you're going to have to face him at trial since you'll probably be a witness for the prosecution."

Olivia shook her head. "He can wait. I don't want to meet him. Not right..."

"Oh, my God! Olivia?" Fin was trying to hold the cuffed man back, Trevor Langan, on the other side was trying to help him. The man broke free and took two small steps forward. "Hi, Olivia!" he said with a glowing smile.

Olivia clutched Elliot's hand, swallowing hard, as she looked into Simon Marsden's eyes. They were the same chocolate brown as hers. He had the same sloped nose and the same shaped lips. There was no denying that he was her brother. She took a deep breath, blinked and slid into Elliot's open arms, their intertwined hands held protectively over her three-month-old baby-bump. She nodded, only once, and said, coldly, "Hello Simon."

**A/N: So, do they talk? Does Olivia yell? What does Simon say? And, yes, the wedding! Review if you want it! **


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Their big day has arrived, is someone getting cold feet? Help comes from an unlikely source. Olivia remembers a few things that prove that this moment is truly unavoidable.**

**DISCLAIMER:**** SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

It had been a rough two weeks, dealing with the aftermath of meeting her brother face-to-face. She had stayed quiet when they met, said nothing but, "Hello Simon." She had stayed pressed against Elliot's body in an attempt to ignore the man, but Simon stood, no more that two feet away from her, and cried. He apologized, for everything, and told her how he wished things could have been different. He wished they could have been a family, but too many people had been standing in the way. He told her that there were too many people trying to hurt her, and it was his job to get rid of them. To prtect _her_. She listened as Simon babbled on about how he would try to be a good brother and uncle, even if he was in jail, and he'd always be there for her if she needed anything. To prove it, he was going to take care of the one person who was still trying to hurt her. He made that vow, he nodded to his sister and Elliot, and he was taken away.

The twelve days that had passed since then were ridiculously busy. A case had kept them at the precinct for four straight days, causing a lot of tension and irritability. The group took turns telling Olivia to go home, take a nap, eat, relax, and any other command they deemed necessary. They learned, quickly, that the only thing worse than Olivia Benson running on no sleep was _pregnant_ Olivia Benson running on _very little_ sleep. Cragen had to _force_ Elliot to _drag _Olivia upstairs into the cribs at one point, invoking his rights as "Grandpa Don" to put his grandchild to sleep. When they finally bagged the bastard, she was told to take a two-day leave of absence to catch up on her sleep and "take care of our baby," by Ed Tucker himself. Two days, home, alone, with nothing to do, drove her bonkers.

The rest of the week went smoothly. Olivia and Elliot made some last minute wedding plans, and as Sunday drew closer, one of them grew more and more afraid, nervous, and unsure of their ability to make the other happy.

Saturday came, too quickly it seemed, and Casey, Alex and Melinda took Olivia out for what was supposed to be a girly little dinner. They ended up at Rodolpho's, an expensive Italian place, where Liz Donnelly, some other precinct pals, and three girls Olivia hadn't seen since college had gathered to throw her a surprise bridal shower-slash-bachelorette party. Melinda had let it slip that the guys had done the same thing to Elliot, but not to worry, there was no stripper. Or, that's what she was_ told_.

"You didn't think we'd let you get married without a proper farewell to your single-life, did you?" Casey asked, holding up a little black book.

"Oh, my God! Casey, you went through my desk?" Olivia said, embarrassed.

Casey smirked. "No. This is _Elliot's_."

Olivia's eyes narrowed. "Gimme that," she said as she snatched the tiny phone book. She opened it and, like hers, it was filled with the names and dates of every girl he'd dated or slept with. Since he'd been married since his senior year of high-school, it wasn't a long list. He _did_, however, have _potential_ girlfriends written down. Olivia's name, on the first page of the B's, was circled, underlined and starred five times. She smiled. "Why do you have this, Casey?"

Alex piped up. "It's only fair, since he has yours."

"What?" Olivia yelled, turning red. "Oh, my God!"

* * *

"Fin, I'm not looking at it. You can wave it in my face all you want." Elliot folded his arms.

"It's not what you think it is, man. Just look. Read it," Fin said, slapping the book into his palm. "She's proabably already read yours."

Elliot rolled his eyes. "What is this supposed to prove?" he asked, sipping his beer.

"That the two of you belonged together, from the beginning, and you're getting married tomorrow. No keeping secrets," Munch said, peering over his shades at his friend.

Elliot snatched the book and opened to a random page. Each name had been written, with only one date, then crossed out, with reasons for the exemption. He read things like, "too boring," "too needy," "too smelly," but _each _and _every_ name had the same thing written next to it, in bold, red, capital letters. "Not Elliot," he read out loud with a smirk.

"See, told you," Fin said.

O'Halloran, from their lab, turned around and asked, "Are you sure you guys don't wanna watch this? She's really, very, um, she's flexible."

Fin and Elliot chuckled, chugged their beer, without turning around and said, together, "We're good."

* * *

Around midnight, Alex and Casey led Olivia to a more secluded section of the restaurant and told her to keep her eyes closed. "I hate surprises. You didn't get me a stripper dressed like a cop, or something relatively stupid, did you? I'll kill you, Alex."

"Well, he isn't in uniform," Alex whispered to her. "But he_ is_ a cop."

"Okay," she heard Fin's voice say. "Open your eyes. Both of you."

Olivia opened her eyes, and Elliot was standing in front of her, equally as surprised. "Hi," she said, smiling. "Hey, Liv," he said, taking a step toward her and smiling. "How was your night?"

"Fun. A blast, actually. Who the hell is Clarissa?" Olivia said, with a slight laugh and a raised eyebrow.

Elliot laughed and pulled her close. "The girl I used to cheat off of in Chemistry. You blew off four guys because they're faces were asymmetrical?"

"The _second_ reason was really the more _valid_ one," she said, shyly. She took his hand, looked at Casey and Alex and shrugged. "Not that I'm not incredibly happy to see him, but why is he here?"

Casey smirked. "It's after midnight. We figured you had your last night out, you'd want to see each other before we have to keep you apart. It's bad luck to see each other before the wedding."

"Thanks," Elliot said, with a nod to Fin. Alex, Casey and Fin walked out, joining the rest of the group in the other room, giving Olivia and Elliot some much needed time alone.

* * *

Elliot was pacing in a small room in the church, and Dickie, Fin and Munch were watching nervously. His brother was smirking; he'd bet money on Elliot chickening out. "I don't know if I can do this," Elliot said, shocking everyone in the room.

"It's a little late now, Stabler!" Fin yelled. "What the hell are you talking about, man?"

Elliot shrugged. "I rushed her into this. This all happened so fast. I don't know if I'm what she wants, what she needs. She deserves…"

"You," came a voice from the doorway. "She deserves_ you_. She always has, and always will. She's having your baby, Elliot. She's compared every man she has ever been with to you, including _me_."

Elliot turned around and saw Trevor Langan standing in the doorway, with Ed Tucker and Captain Cragen. They all looked worried. "Langan? I half expected you to be the first to object to this wedding."

"I was planning on it. Until I talked to Olivia in the interrogation room. We didn't just talk about her mother, Elliot. She told me all about you, and her, and the things that you've done that made her fall in love with you," Trevor said.

"Yeah?" Elliot asked, a smile on his face and a sparkle in his eyes. "Like what?"

* * *

Olivia smiled as Maureen asked the question, and she sighed, thinking back to the first moment she felt the butterflies. "Well, Mo, five minutes after we met he called me 'honey,' in a slick, macho way, and I punched him. He groaned, then chuckled, then he told me I had a hell of a right hook and promised he'd never call me 'honey' again, unless I wanted him to. I realized, then, that I _wanted_ him to."

"Wow, you_ hit_ Daddy?" Lizzie asked, swaying in her wine-colored dress, playing with her white sash.

"Oh, yeah. A couple of times," Olivia said with a light laugh. Alex and Casey helped her with her veil as Kathleen asked to hear another story. "Okay. um...oh! We were on a stakeout, two years ago. We'd been up for three days watching this guy and we were both irritated and exhausted. We'd gotten into a fight over something stupid before we left. We sat in that car for two hours, silent, because we were mad at each other, and we're both so stubborn that neither one of us wanted to cave in and apologize. All of a sudden, Elliot turns around, looks at me with these puppy-dog eyes and starts singing, '_I'm Sorry'_ by Brenda Lee. I melted."

Melinda smiled and turned Olivia toward the mirror. Her white empire-waist gown, tied with a wine-colored sash, fell to the floor and her train flowed behind her, giving the impression that she was floating. "This is really happening isn't it?" she asked, staring at her bridal reflection in the mirror, her hands over her belly. "All of it."

"Yeah, Mom," Kathleen said. "It is."

* * *

Elliot chuckled. "She remembers that I _sang_ to her?"

"Yeah," Trevor said, smiling. "She also told me that you brought her extra egg-rolls every Wednesday, and that you ran background checks on every guy she went out with for the last three years, and something about her kitchen sink."

"Don," Elliot said, facing Cragen. "Go get her."

Cragen smiled and winked. "You got it, Elliot."

Cragen ran down the corridor and knocked on the door, opening it when he heard Casey say, "As long as you're not a Stabler you can come in."

"Olivia, honey, it's time," Cragen said. His mouth dropped, he gasped and a tear fell. "You look absolutely beautiful." He took her hand, she said thank you, and the group of girls, in their matching gowns, lined up in the hallway.

Lizzie and Dickie walked slowly down the white carpet, Lizzie dropping flowers and Dickie carrying a white box. Casey took Fin's hand and walked into the church as the soft music played. They were followed by Alex and Munch, Melinda and Hank, Maureen and Elliot's brother, then Kathleen and O'Halloran. The girls lined up on the left, holding their flowers, as the men took their places behind Elliot on the right. The wedding march began to play and everyone stood up. That's when Elliot stopped breathing. He stared at the doors and felt his heart pounding, and when he saw Don Cragen walk in with Olivia at his side, he died. He looked right at her, caught her eyes through her veil and three years of love and life passed between them in unspoken words and silent emotions.

Three years of friendship, partnership and loyalty. Three years of fighting over cases and victims, making up in special little ways, promising never to fight again, until the next fight broke out. Three years of support and three years of falling in love. Hopelessly, deeply and irrevocably in love. It was all there, in their eyes. They reached the pulpit and the priest asked, "Who gives this woman to this man?"

Cragen, choking on his words with a light sob, said, "I do," as he took Olivia's hand and placed it into Elliot's open, waiting palm. Olivia felt the tear hit her hand and knew that Elliot was crying. Of course he was, since _she_ was. He looked so gorgeous in his tux, his wine-colored tie standing out against his white and black suit, his piercing blue eyes staring at nothing but her. They didn't hear anything the priest said, at all, they were too wrapped up in each other, holding hands, standing in front of their friends, their family, promising to love and protect each other for the rest of their lives, as if they weren't going to do so anyway, it was a magical moment.

"I love you," he mouthed, silently, running a finger along her hand.

She smiled. "I love you," she mouthed in return. They stood, still, silent, smiling and lost in one another.

"The rings?" the priest demanded. Dickie stepped forward and handed the holy man the box, and the priest took the matching bands out, separated them and gave Olivia's ring to Elliot, and Elliot's to Olivia. "Elliot, do you take Olivia to be your wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, for fairer or fouler, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, for as long as you both shall live?"

Elliot nodded. "I've never been more certain of anything in my life. I do."

The priest smiled, then looked at Olivia, who looked deliriously happy. He chuckled and said, "And do you Olivia, take Elliot to be your wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, for fairer or fouler, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, for as long as you both shall live?"

"You bet your holy bippy, I do," she said, as she shed a few more tears, smiling. Everyone laughed. Elliot chuckled and squeezed her hand. That was his Liv.

"Elliot," the priest said, "Please, place the ring on Olivia's finger and repeat these words: 'With this ring I thee wed, and with my body I thee honor, and with all my worldly goods I thee endow'."

Elliot did as he was told, sliding the ring onto Olivia's finger with a shaky hand. She gave his hand another squeeze once the ring was on her finger, and he relaxed, instantly. She was almost his. For good.

The preist turned to Olivia and said, "Olivia, place the ring upon Elliot's hand and repeat these words: 'With this ring I thee wed, and with my body I thee honor, and with all my worldly goods I thee endow."

Olivia shook slightly as she followed her instructions. She got the same reassuring squeeze from Elliot's hand. They heard the priest say, "In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen," and Elliot's eyes widened. They repeated, "In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen," together, and both of their hearts raced.

The priest looked around the room and smiled, then peered down at Olivia and Elliot, who had yet to let go of each other's hands. "Those whom God hath joined together let no man put asunder. Forasmuch as Elliot and Olivia have consented together in holy wedlock, and have witnessed the same before God and this company, and thereto have given and pledged their troth each to the other, and have declared the same by giving and receiving of a blessed ring, and by joining of hands; I now pronounce them Man and Wife. Elliot, you may kiss your bride."

Elliot, forgetting for a moment he was in a church, pulled Olivia toward him and kissed her with all the passion and emotion that had been running through his system for the past hour. The kiss was deeper than it should have been, as they were in front of a priest. He ran hands down her back and held her close. Then he pulled away, smiling, staring into Olivia's sparkling eyes. "I love you, Mrs. Stabler," he said to her, pressing his forehead against hers. She blinked away a tear and said, "I love you, and I love the sound of that. Mrs. Stabler," she smiled and gave him another quick kiss.

"Go with God, my children," the priest said, and Elliot and Olivia walked back down the aisle, hand in hand, while their family and friends cheered for them. Their wedding party followed them out, as the unavoidable union came to a beautiful close. They would enjoy their reception, paid for by Ed Tucker, and dance the night away as husband and wife, oblivious to the ominous red light blinking away in Captain Cragen's office, bearing a shockingly tragic and important message for Elliot.

**A/N: Whoo!! They're married!!! But, what's on the answering machine? Uh-oh! Reviews, please?**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Honeymoon??? What was on Cragen's machine?? Read and review??**

"Go, don't worry about anything. We'll be fine for a week without you," Cragen said, forcing Olivia and Elliot into the car. "Have a safe flight and don't be afraid to charge whatever you want to the room. The sky's the limit for you."

Olivia smiled at her "father," and gave him a big hug. "You didn't have to pay for our honeymoon."

"My job, as your surrogate father, Olivia, is to do just that. Call us when you land," he said.

Olivia and Elliot finally got into the black Lincoln and drove off, watching their friends and family wave to them from outside the banquet hall. Don Cragen had surprised them, during his toast, by announcing that they were leaving as soon as the reception was over, and would be spending a week in Lanai, Hawaii. He'd booked them a private bungalow in a secluded section of the island, knowing they'd rather be all by themselves than surrounded by people. It came as a shock, but they were now sitting in a driven car, on their way to the airport. Olivia in her wedding dress, Elliot in his tux, and neither one quite ready to believe all of this had happened.

"What's that?" Olivia asked, pointing to three wine-colored gift bags on the floor in front of Elliot. He laughed. "I don't know," he said, lifting the first bag. He flipped over the tag. "This is from Alex and Casey." He picked up what was inside and his eyes widened. "Thank you, Alex and Casey," he said with a smirk as he pulled out the skimpiest, sexiest, silk and lace lingerie he'd ever seen. He waggled his eyebrows at Olivia, but then said, "There's really no point in wearing it if I'm just gonna rip it off of you," then he dropped it back in the bag. He picked up the second bag and read the tag. "This one says it's from Fin and Munch." He pulled out two tee-shirts, a black one for him and a white one for her, that said _"I just got married and all I got was a new pain in the ass and a lousy tee-shirt."_ He laughed and pulled out two pairs of jeans, his size and her size, with a card. "Liv, listen. 'Guys, thought you'd like to change before you take your first flight as husband and wife. The third gift bag, courtesy of Langan, contains garment bags for your gown and tux, a bottle of champagne and two engraved glasses. We love you guys. Congrats, Mr. and Mrs. Stabler.' How awesome are our friends?"

"Pretty damn awesome. Except, I am _not_ a pain-in-the-ass!" she laughed, holding up Elliot's shirt.

"Come here," he said, pulling her closer to him. He wrapped one arm around her as he held up the bottle of champagne Trevor had given them. "Look, honey," he said, holding the bottle in front of them. "It's non-alcoholic. Trevor wrote, 'Baby-Stabler Safe' on the label." They laughed as he popped the cork and poured two glasses. Elliot held up his glass and looked into his new wife's eyes. "To finally being together forever," he said, clinking his glass into hers.

"Aw, El," she said as she kissed him. "How about, to surviving a nine and a half hour flight to Hawaii with your pregnant wife," she said, clinking his glass, laughing.

"I'm sure we can find something to do on the plane to keep us occupied," he said raising his eyebrow. "One flash of the badge and no one will question why we're _both_ in bathroom." He smirked eviliy, leaned over and kissed her, chuckling.

* * *

"I didn't realize how quiet it would be without Stabler," Fin quipped. He glanced over at the two empty desks and sighed. "Man, I'm buggin' out without them, Munch."

Munch hummed. "Just pretend they're in the interrogation room."

Cragen came out of his office, looking perplexed. "Okay, what do you do when you have something to tell someone, but you don't want to interrupt their honeymoon?"

"Wait till they come back?" Munch offered.

Cragen shook his head. "Who has Power-of-Attorney for Stabler?"

"Bens...can we still call her Benson?" Fin asked.

"Shit," Cragen muttered. "I have to go down to Rikers. I need to see how long they can put this off. Munch..."

Munch rolled his sunglass covered eyes. "I know, I know. I'm in charge until you get back."

* * *

Olivia fluttered her eyes open. She felt the heat on her skin and smelled the ocean air and she sensed his body pressed against her, his arms wrapped tightly around her. They had a long flight, and when they landed, they were welcomed by wonderful native islanders, who wrapped beautiful handmade leis around their necks and walked them to their bungalow. Elliot worked his "I'm a cop" magic on the plane, making them both official members of the Mile-High Club, so they had taken a real, honest-to-goodness, sleeping, nap when they arrived. Olivia could have sworn she'd dreamed it all until her eyes focused on the beach, the blue ocean, the color of Elliot's eyes, and the gorgeous rings on her finger.

"Hey, beautiful," his husky voice whispered in her ear.

She smiled. "Hello, handsome." She rolled her head to the side, slightly, to look at him, and he kissed her. The island breeze carried in through the open, room-length window, the cotton curtains fluttering, the warmth and light of the sun seeping in, enveloping them as they enveloped each other. "This is wonderful," she said with a sigh.

"Yeah, it is. I want you out of that silly tee-shirt, though," he said, kissing her again. He tugged on it, to emphasize his point, and she complied, breaking the kiss and pulling the white cotton novelty garment over her head. "Better?" she asked with a smile.

"Oh, yeah," he said, smirking. He trickled his fingers down her body and tugged her loose fitting jeans over her hips, tossing them to the floor of the bungalow. "Even better," he quipped. He kissed his way up her body, stopping at her belly, and suddenly the mood changed. He softened, he smiled and he nuzzled the barely there swell of what would become a baby-bump. "Hey, baby. It's your daddy. Mommy and I love you, very much, and we can not wait to meet you. We got married yesterday. Your momma made me the happiest man on Earth, and I would like you to know that I have never loved anyone the way that I love your mommy. I've never loved anyone as much, or as intensely, and I know you have no idea what I'm saying, but you need to hear this. You need to know that you are a product of love, so much love, and we are both going to be here, together, waiting for you."

Olivia felt a tear fall and land on her stomach. She held a hand to the back of his head, tears in her own eyes, falling in love with him a little more. "Elliot," she said, softly. He looked up at her, his ocean eyes leaking, and he smiled. He crawled over her and kissed her deeply as he shimmied out of his jeans. He held her close, looking directly into her eyes, as he slipped into her, delicately, rocking into her inch by inch, never letting go of her gaze. She wrapped her arms around his neck, running one hand up through his hair and keeping the other held to his nape. She pulled him down to her, meeting his lips in a slow, passionate kiss.

He kept his movements slow and deep, the sounds off the island creating the most romantic ambiance, and Olivia dropped the hand from his neck to the bed, searching for _his_ hand. She found it, grabbed it, and linked their fingers together as she began to clench around him. She forced herself to keep her eyes open, her right hand still wound in his hair. "El," she said, gasping. "I love you."

She won, a silent victory, she said it _first _this time, and he smiled at her, rubbing her nose with his. "I love you so much, Liv. So much that it hurts sometimes," he said, pushing through her tightening walls. "But, it's a good kind of pain." He kissed her, nibbling gently on her bottom lip. He pulled away to look into her eyes, he loved to watch her explode beneath him. He counted down in his head, as he thrust slowly, he timed it perfectly and when he saw her pupils dilate, felt her squeeze his hand and felt her hot core clamp shut and pulsate, he spilled inside of her with a grunt and a gasp and a light chuckle. Their intense eye-contact never faded. They were both experts on going temporarily blind with eyes wide open.

* * *

Cragen walked back into the room, solemnly, and huffed. "Munch," he said. "Get Ed Tucker down here, now. Then, I need you to find the phone number, or an address, for Paul and Madeline Malone."

"Uh, aren't they Stabler's ex-in-laws?" Fin asked. "Are we sending their wedding gift back? Olivia loved the China, it was surprising coming from..."

"No, Fin. You're going to tell them that their daughter's in a coma. She was almost killed in jail. Simon Marsden had one last person to get rid of, one last person who was trying to hurt his sister. She was plotting something else, Simon found out, had someone beat her to within an inch of her life."

"Why do we need Tucker?" Munch asked, dialing the number.

Cragen sighed. No one knew about him. "Um, he and Elliot got a little closer. Tucker can act as Elliot's advocate. I'm not interrupting their honeymoon for this. Kathy never changed her will. If she dies, everything goes to Elliot and the kids, and_ now_ that includes Olivia. Langan's talking to Kathy's lawyer right now about it."

Fin shook his head. "Shit, Cap. You gotta call him."

"If she dies, I'll call him. I'm not going to ruin his honeymoon for nothing. I'm not going to let Kathy destroy his happiness; she's fucking unconscious and she's still trying. No way. I'm prepared to get a court order to keep her alive until they get on the plane to come home, if that's what it takes," Cragen yelled.

"Wow," Fin said, "I've never seen you this upset."

"They deserve to be happy, after everything they've been through, and Kathy has been there, at every turn, trying to stop them. You can't avoid the unavoidable, and Kathy may have given her life because she couldn't face that fact. So, yes, Fin, I am fucking upset," Cragen snapped as he walked into his office, slamming the door, praying that Kathy could hold on for four more days.

* * *

"El?" Olivia asked, rolling over to face him.

"What, baby?" he responded, looking into her eyes.

"You made all my dreams come true," she said, pulling herself closer to him. She rested her head on his chest and started out the window at the sunset. "I didn't know what love was until you, you made me a wife, and a mother, and I hope I can be everything you want in..." he pressed a finger to her lips. "Liv, you already are," he assured her. and as they kissed, the sun set on their first day in Lanai, their first day of their new life together as one, oblivious to the impending tragedy, hanging by a thread, waiting to cut their week of bliss short.

**A/N: Can Kathy wait to die until they fly home? Will she wake up? If she does, will she even know who Elliot is? Who knows, but these questions were unavoidable. Review?!?!**


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: How is the rest of their honeymoon? How's Kathy? Read on! I love you guys. **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story**

Olivia was dreaming. Mentally recalling the events of yesterday. The stroll along the beach, the romantic sunset, the amazing sex they had, rolling in the hot sand, no one around to care. She fluttered her eyes open and took a deep breath. Salty, fresh, ocean, island air and..."Pancakes?" she asked, popping up in the bed. "El?"

"Yeah, baby. I'm making pancakes." Elliot was bent over in the small kitchenette in their bungalow, making the fluffy, orgasmic pancakes that Olivia loved. Olivia grinned and wrapped the sheet around her, padded softly over to him and wrapped one arm around him.

"You know," she said, "We have two unpacked, unopened suitcases sitting in the corner. We've been here for five days and we haven't even gotten out of the bed, except to take a naked walk on the beach."

Elliot turned his head to face her. "Are you complaining?"

"Nope," she said with a smile. "Just stating the facts, Detective Stabler."

"Open your mouth," he said. She raised an eyebrow, but dropped her jaw. Elliot popped a piece of a pancake into her mouth and watched as her eyes rolled back behind her head, and a sultry smirk played at her lips. "I love that face," he said, kissing the end of her nose. "Pancakes and sex. I can definitely keep you happy for the rest of your life."

She smiled as she chewed and wrapped her arm tighter around him. "You will. I _know _you will."

"Liv, silly question, why the hell are you wrapped in a sheet? I've seen you naked a million times, we're in a private bungalow on a remote section of a pretty empty island," Elliot said as he flipped the last pancake onto a plate and turned off the stove.

"Because, I actually want to eat the pancakes," she said, matter-of-factly.

Elliot laughed. "You can't _eat_ naked?"

Olivia sighed and dropped the sheet. Elliot froze. His left eye twitched. He put the plate down on the counter and pounced on her like a hungry lion, kissing her neck and stroking her already wet slit, working her up rather quickly. "Fuck, Elliot, See?" she said, moaning.

"Huh?" he said, stopping. "Oh," he laughed. "Sorry."

Olivia chuckled. "Don't stop now. I can eat _cold _pancakes," she said, rubbing his back, leading him toward the bed. He crawled on top of her, slowly, and slid inside of her, when his phone rang. They both groaned. "Are you kidding?" he mumbled against his wife's lips. He pulled away from her. "I don't even know where my phone is, right now." He pulled out of her and searched, finally picking up the jeans he wore five days ago, and found the phone in the pocket. "Stabler. Hey, Cap. God, the kids? Oh, thank God. What? How...oh, shit. Yeah, no, it's fine. She thinks _what_? Wow. No, uh, we'll be home to, uh, explain. This is a good thing, it means she's gonna be out of our lives. Thanks."

"What is it, El?" Olivia asked, concerned. "Is it one of the kids?"

Elliot walked back to the bed, climbed back in and held Olivia close. "No, the kids are fine. It's uh, Kathy. She was attacked in jail. Simon had someone try to kill her, but they were stopped before they could finish the job. She was in a coma for a couple of days. Cragen didn't want to interrupt us, but she woke up this morning. Liv, she can't remember _anything_ about the last _thirteen_ years, our entire marriage, her career, her boyfriend, it's all gone. She's got partial brain damage. She thinks we're still together, in high-school, and she thinks she's having _my_ baby. She doesn't know who _any_ of the kids are, and she doesn't know who _you_ are."

"So," Olivia began, "When she gets her memory back she'll flip out and try to kill us again."

"The doctors don't think she'll _get_ her memory back, baby. If she does, it won't be for _years_, and by then she'll have been in jail or a hospital for so long she'll have forgotten all about us anyway."

"What are we gonna do?" Olivia asked.

Elliot smirked. "We are going to fly home, and introduce her to our family. She knows she's in the hospital, she knows she's been in jail, now she's gonna know that she's out of my life for good and Liv, do you know what this means?"

"Ding, dong, the witch is dead?" she joked.

"Well, yeah," Elliot laughed. "But it also means that since she has no recollection of ever having the kids, you can now claim them as _yours_. Completely. _No one_ will argue." He kissed her forehead and she smiled at him.

"El, I already thought of them as mine," she said, kissing him again. He rolled over on top of her and slid into her in one fluid motion, to finish what they'd started before the phone rang.

* * *

Their plane landed at seven-thirty, Cragen picked them up at the airport. "I'm so sorry about this," their captain said. "Your kids are shaken up, not about Kathy not remembering them, but about their_ grandparents_. Elliot, Kathy's parents are scaring the shit out of your kids. We have to go to the hospital, right now."

"What? What are they saying to my kids?" Elliot asked, demanding.

Cragen sighed as they barreled their way through the airport. "They told your kids that since Kathy doesn't know who they are, you were never going to let them see grandma and grandpa again, and they were going to have to find a way to see them, any way they could. They're making threats."

"Jesus Christ," Elliot muttered. "I think her psychosis is hereditary."

They rode quickly to the hospital, ran even faster through the glass doors and followed Cragen as he led them to Kathy's room. The kids leaped into the arms of their father and their new mother. Elliot glared at his former in-laws. "What the hell have you been telling my kids," he seethed in a whisper.

"The truth, Elliot," Mr. Malone spat. "You really expect me to believe that you're going to let us remain a part of your new, perfect family..."

"Yes."

The voice was Olivia's.

It shocked everyone.

"You are their grandparents. Whether she's in jail, crazy or _both_, you're their _blood_. Family is family. We'd never keep them from you. We haven't so far, have we? After everything she's already done, we've still kept you involved. Why would that change?" Olivia asked, softly, clutching a frightened Lizzie in her arms.

Mrs. Malone softened her expression. "My God, Paul. She's right. Like Lizzie said, she really is an angel," she whispered, a tear rolling down her cheek.

"Yeah, she is," Elliot said, looking at Olivia with a warm expression.

"I'm sorry," Kathy said, groggy. just waking up, confused, from her bed. "But who are all of these kids and...Elliot? Is that you, baby? You're not in your uniform, did they send you home?"

"Baby?" Maureen asked, making a horrified expression.

Elliot rested his hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Uh, yeah, Kathy. It's me. But, you can't call me 'baby' anymore. See, you were hurt, in jail. You did some pretty horrible stuff to me and my wife."

"Wife?" Kathy asked. "You're married? That's not...not right._ We're_ getting married."

Elliot looked at Olivia, then moved, stepping closer to Kathy. "Kathy, listen. Someone hit you, very hard, on the head. You don't remember anything that's happened for the last _decade_. We aren't together anymore, and that baby you're carrying is _not_ mine. That beautiful woman, right there," he said pointing to Olivia, "Is my wife. She _is_ having my baby. And these children, Maureen, Kathleen, Lizzie and Dickie, they're _our_ kids. Mine and..." he paused and took a deep breath, then looked at Mr. and Mrs. Malone.

"Just, do it, Elliot. It'll make it easier for her," Paul Malone said, blinking back tears.

Elliot continued. "Mine and _Olivia's_. You and I haven't been together since high-school, Kathy. That guy over there, the one in the white jacket? He's a doctor. _He's_ the father of your baby, Kathy. He's the one who you need to be with right now. I think you two need to talk." Elliot nodded at Kathy's parents, then took his family out into the hallway.

"Why did you tell her we weren't her kids?" Kathleen asked.

Elliot sighed. "Honey, she doesn't remember anything about you, she doesn't remember giving birth to any of you, your lives are wiped from her memory. If I was to tell her that you guys were her children it would send her into traumatic shock and she could..."

"I get it," Maureen said. "After everything she did, it's better this way."

Kathleen nodded. "Yeah, I know. I just wanted to know why you were so _nice_ about it. I would have _loved _to see her freak out."

Olivia's eyes widened. "Katie?"

"Yeah, Mom?" she asked, calmly.

Olivia put her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Why would you have..."

Kathleen interrupted. "Okay, hi! She tried to kill us! In that car! Then she tried to get you both in trouble at work. She shows up at our house and punches Mom in the face. _Then _she makes the judge kick us _out_ of our house, not that we don't totally _love_ our new place, but we had to sleep on the floor of Mom's old apartment for a week. My back _still _hasn't fully recovered. And _then_ she makes friends with Mom's psycho brother and tries to get you and our baby brother or sister killed by blowing up the police station which ended up putting Uncle Munch in the hospital. Personally, I think she _deserves_ a little bit of the post-traumatic stress that we've all had to deal with for the past seven months! Go traumatize her!"

"Wow, Katie," Elliot said. "Remind me never to piss you off."

Kathleen huffed. "You already have! You're supposed to be in Hawaii for another two days being all gooey and romantic with Mom. Not_ here_ sugar-coating that _horrible_ woman's new life for her!"

Lizzie cleared her throat. "What my temper-tantrum-having, yet correct, older sister is trying to say, is that we are going to stay with the Warner's for the weekend. You two can pretend the house is Hawaii. It'll be really easy."

Dickie chimed in. "Yeah, there's a whole bunch of surprises...ow! Maureen!"

"Surprises are only surprises if you don't talk about them, little brother!" Maureen scolded, whapping her brother in the arm.

Cragen came up to the family, with Trevor Langan. "Guys, the D. A has decided, under the circumstances, that Kathy should be released into the care of a mental health facility. Trevor's going to talk to her parents. Since she can't remember committing the crimes, she can't remember the reasons, therefore she's no longer a threat to you or your family. She is, however, mentally retrograding, and needs help."

"Thanks," Elliot said, shaking Cragen's hand, then Trevor's. "We're gonna wait for you Cap. Hank is coming to pick up the kids."

Cragen nodded, then walked into the hospital room to tell the Malones what was happening. Elliot looked at Olivia, still unable to believe that she was really his wife. He turned her face toward him, smiled, kissed her and said, "What do you think the kids meant by 'surprises,' baby?"

"No clue," she replied kissing him back. "As long as they didn't pour sand all over the new carpet, I'll be happy."

**A/N: What have the kids done to the house for their parents? Is Kathy really suffering memory loss or did she just give her family up out of guilt? Review! **


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Okay, here is chappy 26! What have the kids done to the house? What's really up with Kathy? I love you all!**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story**

Cragen dropped Olivia and Elliot off, waving to them and honking as he pulled away and drove down the sleek Upper East Side avenue. Olivia ran up the stairs and unlocked the door, but before she could open it, Elliot stopped her.

"Hey," he said. "Uh-huh. Move."

Olivia raised an eyebrow at him, but stepped aside, letting him pass by. Elliot pushed the door open, wide, quickly punched in the security code, and turned to Olivia. He grabbed her, without warning, and scooped her up. She yelped and wrapped her arms around his neck, only relaxing when she realized she was being safely cradled. "You know I have to carry you over the threshold," he said with a wink. It took very little effort for him, as his strong arms were not at all weighted by her just-about-four-month-pregnant, athletic body. She looked up at him in amazement as he carried her through their front-door, kicked it shut, and set her down in the middle of the foyer. He'd only dropped her gently to her feet, he didn't let her go. He looked at her with so much warmth and love and he kissed her tenderly. Something caught Olivia's eye, over Elliot's shoulder, as they pulled apart.

"What the Hello Kitty is that?" she said, pointing in the direction of their dining room. Elliot screwed up his face in confusion. "Hello Kitty?" he asked, turning around. "Holy shit," he said, not censoring himself the way his wife had. "Where is all the furniture?"

"I'm just glad they rolled up the carpet," Olivia muttered, stepping into the beach that lived where their expensive cherry wood table and chairs used to reside. The kids had placed a very large, rectangular, plastic pool in the dining room and filled it with sand, angling it off at one end, and filled that end with water. A large, welcoming beach blanket was set down and a cooler filled with tropical flavored juices for Olivia, and beer for Elliot, was sunken into the sand next to it. They had their own little island. "Look at this," she said, peeling a note off of the wall. "Hey, Mom and Dad. Don't get mad, we'll clean it up. You shouldn't have had to come back for something so stupid, so enjoy the rest of your weekend in paradise. Push play on the remote control next to the cooler, push the red button on the thermostat and wear the suits that are hanging in the kitchen. If anything goes wrong, blame Dickie. Love always, four out five Stabler kids." Olivia looked up at Elliot with tears in her eyes.

Elliot, too, was feeling a lot of emotions. "Do we have amazing kids or what?"

"So amazing," Olivia said. "Okay," she mumbled with a nod, putting the note on the end-table, "Push the play button on the remote..." she paused, taking off her shoes and socks to walk across the sand-box that was her dining room. "Gotcha." She pushed play and the surround sound roared to life with ocean waves, seagulls and splishy-splashy water sounds. Olivia grinned and closed her eyes. "It's almost like we're still there," she whispered.

Elliot plucked off his sneakers and socks and joined her on the newly established Stabler Beach. "Okay, then they said to push the red button on the thermostat." He plodded over to the wall, where their digital heating and cooling control unit was, and pushed the red-button. The temperature in the room rose, almost instantly, by at least fifty degrees. "Holy balls," Elliot said, tugging off his sweatshirt.

Olivia laughed. "I think that's where the outfits in the kitchen come in," she said with a smirk. Elliot raised his eyebrows and walked over to the archway that separated the dining room from the kitchen. The sand was already getting hot, so he hopped, which made Olivia laugh. His smart kids hung the clothes close enough to reach so he wouldn't have to step over their "beach-box" and get sand in the kitchen. He grabbed them and took one look at the bathing suit they picked out for Olivia and grinned like a fox. "I love our children." He handed Olivia the white bikini and smirked. "Change," he commanded.

"Right here on the beach?" she said, feigning modesty. "What if someone sees me?" she joked.

Elliot rolled his eyes. "We took a two hour long walk on the bean in Hawaii stark naked, you're worried about dropping trou in our dining room?" he chuckled. "If anyone so much as turns their head in your direction, Liv, I'll kill 'em." He peeled off his shirt and watched, out of the corner of his eye, as his wife, and her tiny baby-bump, got naked. He smirked, contemplating whether or not he should let her get the bikini on, or if he'd have more fun taking it off of her. He opted for the latter, and pulled his wedding-ring patterned swim trunks on. "First, it's Munch and Fin's silly shirts, now it's these shorts. Why are we so easy to laugh at?"

"Because, my dear husband, we're funny, funny people. Look down. We have Lanaii, Hawaii where we used to eat breakfast," Olivia said with a laugh. "So, what shall we do, El? Go for a dip? Have a drink? Take a nap?"

Elliot looked at her as if she'd just asked him if he wanted a root canal. "Nap? No napping on the honeymoon!"

"Okay," she laughed. "Well, whatever we do, you have to be careful of this one," she said pointing to her belly. "He or she does not like being squished, no more lying face down for mommy."

Elliot simpered. "I like it when your on the bottom anyway," he winked, pulling her closer. "Elliot," Olivia said, eyes wide, slapping him in the arm, "You dirty-minded man! I meant that I can't sleep on my stomach anymore, nincompoop!" He chuckled and wrapped her in his arms. He kissed her forehead and whispered, "God, Liv, why couldn't it have been you?"

"The nincompoop? Because I have more sense than you...

"No," he snickered. "Why couldn't it have been you, thirteen years ago. Why wasn't it you who walked into that dumb math class and why wasn't it you that I took things too far with too fast, and why wasn't it you that I spent all those years with," he asked, serious, with a sigh.

Olivia looked into his eyes and smiled at him. "Because, Elliot, then you never would have had the amazing little angels that gave us our own private beach. You would have ended up resenting me the way you ended up resenting Kathy. I think, and this is going to shock you, El, God gave you Kathy, your mistake, so that when I came along, to save you, you'd know. You'd recognize it. You'd be able to realize what true love really was, you would know that it was something you never had before and it would make you treasure it, never take it for granted, and it would make you want to do anything and everything to make sure you never let me go."

Elliot looked at her, stunned. Olivia was never religious, but that made perfect, undeniable and unavoidable sense. "Liv, baby. That was so perfect. Where...how..."

Olivia interrupted him. "It's the same reason God sent you to me after, first, giving me my mother. He sent you to save me, because there was no way I could have saved myself. I knew, from the moment you promised to watch my back and protect me no matter what, even if, at the time, it was only as my partner, that you were the only person in the world who ever would." She pulled him over to the beach blanket and sat, tugging him down. "El, the day we met, the reason I punched you when you called me 'honey,' it wasn't because you were being misogynistic and sexist," she said with a laugh. "I wanted to do everything in my power to make sure you could never let me go."

"So you punched me in the face?" he said with a snort.

Olivia nodded. "I thought you needed to be treated like a child. Ya know? I have a crush on you, so I'm gonna hit you? It totally worked."

Elliot's eyes sparkled and he laughed. "Yeah, baby. It did. The minute your fist collided with my cheek, I knew I wanted you."

She beamed up at him and scooted back. "My work here is done," she quipped as she leaned back on her elbows.

"Oh, no it's not," Elliot muttered. He climbed over her, gently, leaned down and kissed her as he tugged the strings on her bikini top, pulling it off with ease.

Olivia held back her laugh and simply peered up at him. "I don't think this is a topless beach, El."

"It's not," he said, pulling the strings apart on her bottoms. "It's a nude beach, actually. You are horribly over dressed." Olivia scoffed. "Look who's talking, oh, Lord of the wedding-rings," she chided, tugging on his swim-trunks.

"Oh," he said, rising to his knees and pulling them down, then quickly kicking them off. "Better?" he asked, easing himself onto her, lightly, being careful of her slightly swollen belly. "Much better, she replied. "Now, the last time we did this, I got sand in places I didn't even know I had, so could we try to keep it on the blanket, Mr. Incredible?"

Elliot chuckled. He had been so ruthless with her on the beach in Lanai, that they started making love on their blanket and, without realizing it, rolled and scampered five feet to the left and ended their romp in a foot-deep groove in the sand. "I'm not making any promises, but at least if we roll five feet to the left now we'll be in the water, not the sand," he stated.

He slipped inside of her and her eyes drifted shut. She'd always felt amazing with him. She was always safe, warm, and he filled her to the absolute limit and stretched her beyond capacity every time they made love. Since they'd been married, though, she felt different. It was probably in her head, but she felt whole. Complete. Finished. It was a wonderful feeling.

"Liv," Elliot whispered, starting to speed up a little. "Shit, Liv?"

"Hmm?" Olivia hummed, rolling her head to meet his, fluttering her eyes open, but keeping her lips pressed together.

Elliot pushed deeper and said, "Phone's ringing."

"Machine," was the only word Olivia could manage to say as she wrapped her arms around her husband. He smirked down at her and lifted one hand off of the blanket to trail it along her body, lightly, until it met the place where their bodies were joined and his fingers found Olivia's clit. She moaned and whimpered as her walls started to clench around Elliot. He bent over and kissed her, wrapping her in his arms. He lifted her off the blanket, slightly, to get even deeper, and she screamed into his mouth.

He returned her passionate yell as the machine's outgoing message finished and they heard the beep. "Hey, it's Munch. Just calling to give you an update, not that you care, on Kathy. Elliot, look, man, you know her better than I do, and something's up. Could she have possibly known Simon before she met you? I'm thinking 'no', right? Well, according to her doctor, and her MRI, the last thirteen years _are_ gone. But, according to her phone log at the hospital, Simon's been calling her, and she's been doing an awful lot of talking to him for someone who isn't supposed to have any idea who he is. Do you think he _made her_ forget? Call me back when you get..." the beep signifying Munch had gone over the allotted time allowed by the Stablers' machine went off, ending the message.

A spent Elliot and an exhausted Olivia were lying on their blanket, on the hot sand, in their makeshift-paradise. Olivia raised an eyebrow and turned her head up to meet Elliot's gaze. She asked a silent question. He kissed her, deliciously, and said, "I'm not calling him back. Not until Monday. I'm on my honeymoon."

**A/N: Hmmm. So Kathy willingly let go of her children, her whole past with Elliot, and her plotting of revenge? What did Simon threaten her with? Also, are they having a boy or a girl? Reviews will make me give up the goods! I love you guys, thank you for reading and reviewing. **


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Wow! Made it to 27! Couldn't and wouldn't have done it without all of you! We find out if it's a boy or a girl! And why would Simon be calling Kathy if she has no idea who he is? What are they talking about?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story**

"Good morning," Olivia said brightly as she walked into the squadroom with Elliot.

"You're happy," Munch said. "You look too happy to be you, Benson. Can I still call you Benson? I can't see myself calling you 'Stabler and Stabler.' You're, like, really happy."

Olivia chuckled. "Very observant, Munch. I'm married and pregnant and just had the best week of my life," she said with a smile. "Of course, I'm happy."

"Is that what's with him, then?" Fin said, pointing to a delirious looking Elliot.

Munch chuckled. "No, I think Stabler's been abducted by aliens. He looks like he's been anal probed, to me."

Olivia smacked Munch on the shoulder. "We have an appointment with my doctor today. We're gonna find out if I'm having a boy or a girl so we can stop calling the poor thing, 'Baby Stabler.' Elliot's looked like that since we woke up, because he's certain it's boy," she explained. "And he's thrilled beyond belief."

Fin nodded. "Ah, I get it. Well, as soon as you get back here, you're lettin' us all know right?"

"I'm tattooing it on my fucking forehead," Elliot said, proving that he was, in fact, alive and paying attention. "I don't get it," he said. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I feel horrible about this, but…" he paused and looked at Olivia. "I'm more excited, and nervous, about this one than my other kids. I can't wait to meet this little one that we created. You and I, Liv. The way it's supposed to be, the way it should have been," he said, brushing a hand along her belly. "I love my kids, desperately, but I just didn't feel the connection to Kathy and the baby the way I feel it with you and this little guy."

"Or girl," Olivia said, scratching gently behind Elliot's ear.

Elliot shook his head. "No, Liv, it's a boy. I can feel it. I've never been wrong about any of my kids. I even knew Dickie and Lizzie were twins."

Cragen came out of his office, interrupting their brief romantic moment, and he narrowed his eyes at them, clearing his throat. "Not that I want to be the one to stop you two from cuddling in the middle of my squadroom, but Simon Marsden's on the phone. He wants to talk to you, Elliot. It's about Kathy."

Elliot's rolled his eyes. "Does it make me a horrible person if I said I didn't…"

"He threatened your kids," Cragen added.

"I'm gonna kill him," Elliot barked, suddenly turning violent. He picked up the phone on his desk and hit the blinking button. "I hope you have your last Will written and notarized because I swear to God…what?" He listened for a moment, then started to spew vulgar words into the receiver. "I don't care," he said. "That's not the point."

Olivia watched in silence; hand over belly, as her husband fumed violently into the phone, spouting threats and words of pure, venomous hate into the phone. "El, please," she said, trying to calm him down.

"Back off, Liv!" he shouted. Elliot shot her an angry, evil look, instantly regretting it when he saw the fear on her face as she backed away from the desk.

He held her gaze and finished the conversation. "Don't try to help me, or my wife, or my children ever again," he said as he slammed the phone down and took a step toward Olivia, softening his gaze. "Liv, I…"

She held a hand up, stopping him. "Don't talk to me until you calm the hell down," she said, turning on her heels and walking toward the corner to grab a bottle of water.

Elliot closed his eyes and sighed. "Great," he mumbled.

Cragen had been waiting behind him, listening. "She'll get over it. She always does. What did he say?"

"He says the calls to her were made to ensure she would…" he paused, clenched his fists, and swallowed. "Do what he asked her to do. He threatened to hurt my kids, which he told me he would never really do. He told her he would have his friends find her, too, and kill her and her baby if she even hinted that she knew anything about the last thirteen years. He thought he was doing us a favor."

Cragen nodded curtly, then glanced at Olivia. "He was, Elliot. Her staying out of your life, forgetting you even exist, is best for everyone, even if it's a load of bull. You can't tell anyone she's lying, not until we get the statement from Marsden in writing, and even then I wouldn't tell your kids or her parents. It would devastate them."

"I know, but what I'm really pissed off about is that instead of coming to me, or another cop, or her parents in the first place, she just gave it all up. She didn't even flinch when I told her they were Olivia's kids. The kids...I knew she didn't want them, but to willingly forget that they even exist?" Elliot shook his head, fighting his anger. "What kind of person is she? Who the hell did I marry?"

"Olivia," Cragen said softly. "You married Olivia, Elliot."

Elliot looked over at Olivia, who was simultaneously rubbing her forehead and her belly, looking sick and tired, a complete one-eighty from the way she'd woken up. "Yeah, I did. Best decision I ever made," he said with a smile.

"You never really knew who Kathy was, Elliot, because you never really cared that much to get to know her well enough. Do yourself and your family a favor." He handed Elliot a large brown envelope and said, "Forget she ever existed. Munch and I will go down to Rikers and get Marsden. Again."

He nodded and squinted at the envelope as his captain walked away. He opened the brown flap and looked inside, and gasped. Cragen had taken two copies of a photo of their wedding kiss, the moment they had officially become man and wife, and framed them. The note in the envelope said, "For your desks, so during the day, in the middle of the pain and the hate we see, you can be reminded that true love exists, and there is a reason we do this job. Protect each other, always. Love, Don."

He felt a swell in his heart as he walked over to Olivia, still standing in front of the corner table, and he wrapped one arm around her. "Hey," he said softly. He held out one of the photos and the note. "Look at this, baby."

She popped her head up and gazed at the picture, running her hand along the frame. She read the note and tears began to leak from her pregnancy-hormone-riddled-eyes. "I love that man," she sobbed, silently cursing herself for blubbering. She reached for a tissue then turned to face Elliot. "Are you okay? Are you done being the Incredible Hulk?"

He chuckled. "Yeah, Liv. I am. I'm sorry, I didn't mean...you got caught in the crossfire."

"I have been in the way of your tyrannical rage before, I don't know why this time got to me so fast. I think it's..." she gestured to her bump. "This one. I'm happy, then I'm sad, then I'm angry, then I'm hungry, then I'm tired, and the littlest thing can cause a damn shift in mood, and through it all...I'm horny as shit."

Fin's head popped up. "Hey, Baby-Girl, you're over-sharing."

They shared a laugh and watched as Munch and Cragen left the bullpen to put an end to Kathy and Marsden's interference in the Stablers' lives once and for all.

* * *

"You really want a boy, that badly? Stop it," Olivia said, swatting Elliot's hand away from the hem of her paper gown.

Elliot laughed and said, "But, it's so tempting, Liv. It's paper. I could just rip it off of you and take you, right on this examining table." He leaned perilously close to her face and brushed his lips over hers. "And honestly, I just want it healthy. We're gonna have a few, right? If it's not a boy now, we can try for one next time. Let's start practicing for next time," he said teasing the paper gown over her knee and licking her bottom lip.

"And when the doctor comes in and asks why I'm naked and there's blue shreds of this thing all over the floor, what am I supposed to tell her?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"That this baby is making you excessively randy, your husband is a wild animal, and neither one of us could control ourselves. Besides, you look better naked than in this blue piece of recycled garbage." He snaked his hand up her leg, slowly inching his way toward the waistband of her boy-shorts. "They're gonna lift it up over your belly anyway, then how much are you really covering?"

"I am not having sex with you in the doctor's office, El. I don't care how hormonal I am," she said, laughing, and trying to get his hand out from under her gown.

"I'll bet you twenty bucks I can change your mind," he said with a wink. He pressed his lips to hers, feeling her weaken and fall toward him, as his hand dug its way into the briefs and caressed her bare mound. They both moaned at the contact. "We can be fast, baby. Like bunnies. I'll be Bugs, you can be Lola," he joked, slipping his finger inside of her. He repossessed her mouth, slid another finger into her and started to climb onto the table with her, but, they pulled apart quickly when they heard the doorknob turning.

"Hello, Mrs. Stabler," her doctor greeted, looking at her chart. Looking up, luckily, just as Elliot sat down.

Snickering, Olivia said, "Afternoon, Doctor Feinstein."

Elliot, too, was trying to control his laughter. "What's up, Doc?"

That did it. Olivia and Elliot burst into a fit of hysterics, leaving Doctor Feinstein confused, but he let out a little laugh. "Okay, glad to see we have happy parents."

"Oh, we're hoppy," Olivia said, she laughed at her error. "Happy! We're happy."

Elliot took her hand and pressed his lips together to stop laughing. He took a deep breath. "So, let's see my son, huh?"

"Or daughter," Olivia said, still lightly chuckling. "It could be a girl, El. You stubborn ass." Doctor Feinstein walked over and sat in the chair in front of the table and lifted the gown, just above the slight baby-bump, and squirted blue gel onto Olivia's stomach. "Oh, cold," she said.

Sorry 'bout that," the doctor replied. He turned on the machine and the monitor and placed the scanner over her belly, swirling and moving it until he got a clear view of the baby. Olivia and Elliot looked at each other, their faces filling with excitement "Well, we have a good strong heart, a beautiful face, we can see a hand and a foot, and what a cute little nose! Good weight and perfect length, judging by the scan."

"Okay," Elliot said, relieved. "That's all great, Doc, but what exactly are we looking at?"

"A baby," the doctor said, smiling smugly. He got exasperated looks from Olivia and Elliot. "Rough crowd. You're looking at a beautiful, healthy, baby boy. See, right there," he pointed at the little nubbly blob on the monitor that made him, in fact, a boy. "Congratulations."

Olivia looked at Elliot and saw the stunned look on his face. Pure shock and joy, as a tear rolled down his cheek. She reached over and brushed it away as one fell from her own eyes. "Elliot," Olivia said, stroking his cheek.

"What?" he whispered, still staring at the monitor. He reached up for her hand and rested his palm over it, still holding it to his face, as he watched his son move languidly inside his wife's tummy, in a daze.

Olivia laughed lightly, melting at the emotion running through her as she watched the strongest, toughest man she'd ever met, being reduced to a puddle of goo as he watched the screen. "I want to name him 'Elliot'," she whispered, her voice cracking.

Elliot turned his head toward her, another tear falling, and he silently recalled the night she'd first told him she'd thought it was a good name. He told her, the next day, he never wanted to name a child after himself. But something in the way she said it just then, the emotion in her voice, the fact that he barely heard her, made him question her. "Why?" he asked, bringing their hands from his face to hers.

"It's a good, strong name. It means 'The Lord is my God,' I looked it up, so we'd instill his faith immediately, no one would question it. We already know it goes perfectly with Stabler. And..." she paused, not really knowing how to tell him the next part without crying. "El, you have been my rock, since the moment we met. You're the strongest, most compassionate, loyal and loving person I know. You're witty, and brilliant, and your temper flares, and it's brutal,but only when it matters. We're supposed to name our child after people whose qualities we admire and people who we want them to be like as they grow, right? That's the Catholic thing?"

"You...my God, baby. Yeah," he said, astonished that she was trying, really trying, this "faith" thing, for him. "It is."

"Well, there is not a single person, in the entire world, that I would rather our son grow up to be like more than his father. Except, maybe, Don. But, no way in hell am I naming our child 'Donald'." She sniffled, and wiped the tears, because she cried, like she knew she would, and added, "You can say no, we can pick something else, That's just how I feel."

Elliot had never heard anything so beautiful, aside from her vows. "Can we compromise? I know you've already vetoed naming any daughter we may have 'Olivia', but I would want to, for the same reason. So, what if we gave them our names, as their middle names? Would that work?"

Olivia nodded with a small smile. "Joshua Elliot Stabler, then."

Elliot raised both eyebrows and smirked. "Liv, you really are..."

"Stubborn. Yeah, I am. You want to use your first name as his middle name, so what's wrong with using your middle name as his first?" She sniffled again as he leaned in and kissed her, wrapping her in his arms and deepening the kiss.

Doctor Feinstein smiled and walked out of the room, as he said to himself, "I will be seeing those two a few more times, I think." He walked down the hall oblivious to the quick, hopping bunnies, celebrating their newly named boy, on the examining table in the room he just left.

* * *

Cragen walked back into the bullpen, confused. "I don't know, Fin. You figure it out!" he yelled, slamming the door to his office."

"What was that about?" Munch asked.

Fin sighed. "Marsden gave a full statement, Malone swears she really doesn't remember anything and was only 'yes'ing Marsden to death on the phone because she didn't know any better. The MRI shows severe damage, but those are easy enough to fake. This is gonna be harder than we thought, and Cragen's pissed because he's not sure if Kathy's really gone fruit loops or if this just another scheme to hurt Olivia and Elliot."

"Nice story," Munch said, handing a written message to Fin. "Bad ending."

"Are you serious?" Fin asked. "When did this call come in?"

"As soon as you walked in the door," Munch said. "Get Cragen. Go."

Fin ran to Cragen's office and pounded on the door. "Yo, Cap, we gotta go back to Mercy General."

Cragen opened the door and asked, "Why?"

Fin handed him the message. "Kathy Malone just went into cardiac arrest. Suspicious circumstances."

**A/N: Who tried to kill Kathy? Did they succeed? What happened with the baby? What do you think about baby boy Stabler? Reviews make me happy! =)**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: What happened to Kathy? What about her baby? Who was behind it? It isn't who you think.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns characters and Law and Order: SVU. TStabler©, that's me, owns the story, plot, narrative and dialogue.**

Olivia sat with the four eldest Stabler kids in the waiting room. Her husband, Elliot, who should have been worried that his ex-wife was probably dead or dying, was rubbing her belly and telling "Joshie" all about this fun sport called baseball that Daddy and Dickie were going to teach him how to play. "And you are gonna be the fastest runner. I know, because your mom and me, we're both pretty fast, Joshie," he said, leaning close to her belly. Olivia ran a hand through Elliot's hair as she shot Maureen, her oldest step-child, a look that said, "Just don't ask."

"Daddy," Lizzie said through a yawn. "Why are we here? If she doesn't know who we are, and we aren't her children anymore, do we need to wait for this?"

Elliot popped his head up from Olivia's baby-bump and looked at his daughter. "Okay, I guess private school was a good choice. You're too smart to be ten," he said.

Dickie looked at his father. "We'll be eleven in a week," he said, smiling and tightening his grip on Olivia's arm. Olivia leaned over and kissed his head. "My big boy," she said, brushing his hair back. "We are here, kids, because despite what you believe and what that evil, crazy woman thinks, she is still family. She needs us, your grandparents need us, and I think we're all enjoying watching Daddy talk to the baby, huh?"

"Elliot," Paul Malone said from another chair, across the room. "Your wife has a heart of gold. After everything Kathy has done and...everything she's put you through..." he choked on his words and nodded.

Elliot smiled at the man he once called "Dad" and nodded back. "Yeah," he said. "That's why I love her. Well, one of the reasons." He smiled at Olivia and pressed a kiss to her lips. "There are way too many reasons, Liv."

She smiled back at him, ran her hand through his hair again and a tear rolled down her cheek. "Damn hormones," she whispered, laughing and sniffling. "Joshie is making mommy an emotional mess."

Kathleen leaned her head over, so she could see Olivia. "Hey, Mom, can we get something to eat?"

Olivia tried to get up but the Malones beat her to it. "We'll take them," Paul said. "You shouldn't be getting up and down so much." Paul and his wife took the kids down to the coffee shop and promised to bring her and Elliot back something to eat.

Elliot leaned back in his chair and wrapped his arm around Olivia. "We really don't need to be here, Liv. The kids don't care...I don't..."

"Yes you do, El. She was your wife for thirteen years, ten of which you once admitted were pretty good, so you _do_ care. Someone tried to kill her. I'm not going to be angry or upset if you act like you care, El," she said as she ran a hand over her belly.

"That's the thing, Liv. I _don't_ care. You'd think I would, but I don't. I really have no feelings about this, honey. I'm sorry she's on an operating table and I'm sorry that baby's gonna be born a month early and I'm sorry that poor bastard of a doctor has to deal with her crazy shit for the rest of his life, but other than that...nothing," he said with a straight face.

"You're serious, right now?" Olivia asked, slightly stunned.

Elliot looked at her, with the only emotion in his eyes directed at her, the love. "Yeah, baby."

Olivia raised both of her eyebrows and leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder. "Remind me never to piss you off."

Elliot laughed. "You have in the past, honey. Immensely. But, nothing you could do, ever, would make me resent you the way..." he was interrupted when Cragen and Fin marched toward them.

"Elliot," Cragen said, "Where are the kids?"

"With Kathy's parents, getting something to eat, downstairs," he told his captain.

Cragen noticed he looked calm, almost happy, as his hand drifted over the swell of Olivia's belly. "Okay, well, we just saw the doctor, and she's in pretty critical condition. The baby's fine, she's in NICU. We suspect foul play. Someone messed with her IV. Can you think of anyone, other than you two and Marsden, who had a grudge against Kathy?"

Elliot thought for a moment. "No, Cap. The only people she'd been hurting for the past few months were me and Liv, the kids, her parents and…"

"Her boyfriend," Olivia interrupted. "He's a doctor, El. He would have had access to the drugs that would cause her heart to stop..."

"And he would have been able to go in and come out of her room unnoticed, as soon as we left," Fin added, cutting into Olivia's statement.

As he finished speaking, the doctor himself came down the hall, a somber look on his face, and he shook his head, tears spilling from his eyes. The only two words that escaped his lips were, "She's gone," and in an instant, so was Elliot. He'd stood up and run down the hall, without looking back.

Olivia watched him fade into the distance for a moment, before following him at a speedy pace. She ran as fast as she could, but with a six-month old fetus growing inside of her, she wasn't up to her old super-human, perp-chasing speed. "Elliot!"she yelled, hoping he'd stop. She followed him down to the café, relieved that he'd only gone to get his kids and Kathy's parents. She stopped outside and she leaned against the nearest wall for support.

He walked into the coffee shop, pulled Paul up from the table and whispered something in his ear. Paul turned to his wife, pale and stone-faced, and tugged on her arm. They bolted, immediately from the café and headed toward the elevator. Olivia watched Elliot sit down at the table, knowing he was going to tell his kids, and she walked into the tiny restaurant, taking the seat that had been vacated by Madeline Malone. She rested her hand on Elliot's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze and he placed his own over it. They both looked at the children, who were munching on pretzels and bagels, and gave them small, sad smiles.

Maureen looked up from her plate and sighed. "She died, didn't she?"

Elliot reached over and grabbed his daughter's hand, taking it off of the bagel. He nodded as, for the first time since they'd arrived, a tear rolled down his cheek.

* * *

It was almost midnight when Elliot walked into the bullpen, his eyes bloodshot and his clothes slightly rumpled. Munch looked up at him, confused, and asked, "What are you doing back here?"

"My job," he said.

"Where's Olivia?" Fin asked, an eyebrow raised in concern.

Elliot took his jacket off and rubbed his eyes. "Home with the kids. They finally calmed down and went to sleep," he said. "Liv's in bed. She was on her feet more than she should have been today. Anything from the boyfriend?"

Fin nodded. "He did it," Fin said, shrugging. "Said he couldn't handle her being unable to remember him, and he'd rather raise the kid alone than have her think it was yours. Now the poor thing gets to live with Kathy's parents, or gets to enjoy an obnoxious ride through the foster care system."

"Are you okay?" Munch asked, studying Elliot's behavior.

Elliot nodded. "The kids were okay, too, until we had a rough go of it with Kathy's parents. They brought up things we had all forgotten, like when Mo and Katie were younger, when we were one big, happy family," he paused, looking down at his left hand. "Fucking Paul, man, he made Liv feel like shit, after everything she did for them and Kathy. He called her a home wrecker, told her that Kathy would still be alive if I hadn't moved on so fast to be with her, he blamed her for everything."

Fin got up and walked toward Elliot. "Man, you know that's not…"

"The kids, Fin, you should have seen them! I have never heard Katie yell at anyone so much! She told him that if he ever spoke to her mother that way again she would have him arrested for assaulting an officer. Maureen told them both she never wanted to see them again, and Lizzie and Dickie, when we left the hospital, called them 'Mister and Misses Malone'," Elliot explained with a laugh. "It was amazing."

Munch chuckled. "So, those aren't tears of grief?"

"No," Elliot said. "I have never been more proud of my kids in my entire life, this whole nightmare with Kathy and Simon is finally over, and my life is finally perfect. I feel like nothing could possibly…"

"Am I interrupting?" The sound of Ed Tucker's voice was intrusive to the bunch. Elliot still hadn't told Munch and Fin that Tucker was his father, and he wasn't sure if he was going to or not. Fin and Munch looked at Tucker with narrowed eyes. Elliot looked surprised. "Stabler," he said. "Could I talk to you?"

Elliot nodded. "Yeah." He shot a quick glance and a shrug to his friends and met Tucker out in the hallway.

"I heard about Kathy and I, I don't know what this means but, I'm sorry. If you or the kids need anything, just ask," he said, slapping a hand on Elliot's arm.

"We're fine," Elliot assured him. "It really, um, doesn't affect us much."

Tucker nodded. "Oh, uh, thanks for the picture, by the way. You're gonna name him Josh? It's a good name."

"Liv's set on naming him after me, so we just took my name and switched it around. He's Joshua Elliot Stabler," Elliot said, beaming with pride.

"She's, uh, what, six months?" Tucker asked, starting to fidget.

Elliot nodded with a smile. "Yeah, I can't believe it. Three months and we get to meet him. Our little mira…why?" he asked, suddenly narrowing his eyes and getting suspicious.

Tucker sighed. "Elliot, she can't come back to work on Monday. I know she thinks she can, but…"

"Hold on, one goddamn minute, here. We agreed six months in the field and two of ass-duty and paper-work," Elliot yelled. "You can't go back on…"

"The bureau thinks that it's safer if she…" Ed was cut off.

"I think the bureau can kiss my ass, Ed. You know, as well as I do, that she will be here, Monday morning, at her desk and she will be just fine for the next two months, the way we planned it," Elliot hissed. "I seriously doubt this is IAB's sudden interest in the welfare of my pregnant partner. Who are they trying to replace her with, huh? IAB bringing in someone else's kid, or is this _my_ father being overly concerned for my pregnant wife?"

Tucker was silent.

"You fix this, or you find a way to squeeze an extra desk in that bullpen, because I am not telling my hormonal wife, who has an amazing temper even when she's not pregnant, that IAB is making her take maternity leave early. She'll be here on Monday," Elliot demanded.

"I will…see what I can do. You're new, temporary, partner won't be very happy," Tucker said, marching off down the hall. He had a lot of strings to pull.

**A/N: Who were they trying to stick Elliot with? Why won't he/she be happy around Olivia? If you know me, you know this was unavoidable. =) **


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: A new partner comes in, temporarily, for Elliot, while Olivia's stuck behind a desk. Who is it?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and related characters. TStabler© owns story, plot, narrative and dialogue. Do not use ANY part of this unless you ask, nicely, please and thank you! =)**

"Josh, please, stop, honey," Olivia said, rubbing her belly. "Calm down, Joshie."

Elliot walked over and handed her a banana and a glass of milk. "Hiccups again?"

"Every day for the last week. It's freaking me out," she said, peeling the banana. She dipped it into the milk, then bit it. She noticed Elliot staring at her. "What? When _you_ get pregnant and start to do weird shit and I stare at you like that, you'll be sorry." She dipped the banana into the milk and bit it again. "At least I don't want anything crazy, like meatballs and chocolate cake."

Elliot laughed and leaned over to kiss her. "I love you, honey." He ran his hand over her head, kissed her again and sighed. "I love you, too, Joshie." He looked up at Olivia and smiled. "I heard you singing to him last night," he said. "Maybe tonight, you can sing us both to sleep?"

"Absolutely," she said, giving him another banana flavored kiss. "Tucker's outdoing himself. He restocks that fruit bowl every two days, and half of everything in that fridge says, 'property of Joshua Stabler.' Hey, do you realize that my initials are now O.N.S? Like, ons? As in there are _offs_ and _ons_?"

"You're babbling, baby," Elliot said, smoothing out her hair.

She narrowed her eyes. "I'm eating a banana, which I hate, drinking milk, which I hate, and your son has the hiccups, which feels like someone is bouncing a tiny ball against my uterus. I'm allowed to babble."

"Yes ma'am," he said, smirking. He kissed her again and walked over to his desk, across from hers and sat down, just as Cragen came into the bullpen, followed by someone they hadn't seen in two years.

"Well, this place has certainly changed! Where is Ben...Benson!" he yelled as he saw her. "You look...absolutely amazing." The man walked over and sat on the edge of her desk, ignoring Elliot.

Olivia's eyes widened and her mouth was glued shut as she tried to swallow a bite of milky banana. She nodded and gulped. "Thanks. What are you doing here?"

"I don't really know, actually. Tucker came into Narcotics, said that SVU was gonna need extra hands for a few months. I have the experience and I, uh, missed you." He smiled at her. "How have ya been, Benson?"

She smirked at him. "Stabler, Cassidy."

"Oh, yeah," he said as he turned to Elliot. "Sup, man." He looked back at Olivia and grinned. "Happy? I played nice."

"No," Olivia laughed. "I was telling you that my last name isn't 'Benson' anymore."

Cassidy's face fell. "Oh, you, uh, you got married? I didn't...wow. To who? Will I get to meet him?" She grinned at Elliot, nodded at Cassidy, and got out of her seat to get more milk and Cassidy gasped. "Holy shit, you're pregnant? I mean you're not big, at all, but you were so tiny, before, it's like, obvious that...you are."

"Yeah, I am. Six months," Olivia said, rubbing the bump and sipping her milk, trying not to make a grimacing face. "That's why you're here. I can't go out into the field. I'm a desk-jockey for the next two months before I go on maternity leave. Thanks to little Joshua Elliot here, Mommy's not a real cop anymore."

Cassidy furrowed his brow. "Joshua Elliot? What, Stabler, are you the Godfather or something?"

"Or something," Elliot said, grinning smugly.

Olivia, instead of sitting back in her seat, walked over to Elliot. "Cassidy, you wanted to meet my husband," she said, gesturing to Elliot. "Here he is. You're gonna love working with him." She held her banana out to Elliot, and he bit it, with a shit-eating grin plastered on his face.

"Oh, my God," Cassidy muttered. "That's not cool. I mean, congrats and all, but...Elliot, you're not still mad at me for..."

"Hell yeah, I am," Elliot said, swallowing the banana.

Cassidy shook his head. "You were married to Kathy! Benson was completely single and free to date..."

Elliot interrupted him. "But, you _knew_, man. You knew and you did it anyway, and then when she didn't want anything more than that one night, you became a pushy bastard. I'm still a little mad at you," Elliot explained. "But, because we need to work together, and because I love and respect my wife, and I know that you really were just a one-night-stand, I promise not to kill you until after my son is born."

Olivia leaned over and whispered, "Or until he's sure he has you alone, where no one will hear you scream."

Cragen came out of his office. "Stabler, Cassidy, you're on. 130 in Central Park."

"Hmm," Olivia said. "It's Wednesday afternoon, Cassidy. The park is gonna be awfully quiet and empty." She saw the fear in his eyes and chuckled. She turned and gave Elliot a romantic kiss. "Be careful, please?"

Elliot nodded and kissed her again. "Always. I love you, baby."

"I love you, too, El." Olivia watched as her husband left for a case with someone else. And, for the first time, she couldn't be there if he needed backup.

* * *

"Hey," Elliot said, walking back into the bullpen four hours later. "Where's Liv?"

Munch looked up from his paperwork. "Your son was playing soccer with her kidneys. She's up in the cribs sleeping it off."

Elliot chuckled. "Cassidy's bringing the asshole up, can you and Fin handle..."

"Yeah," Munch said. "Go be a daddy."

"Thanks," Elliot said.

"And please, if you two are gonna do anything, uh, newlywed-ish, keep it down," Munch said, heading into the interrogation room.

Elliot chuckled again as he walked up the steps. He turned the knob and his heart melted as he saw his wife, curled up on the first bunk, cradling her baby-bump. He tilted his head and smiled, padded over to her softly and climbed into the bed with her. She stirred, and he rubbed her back gently. "It's just me, Liv," he whispered.

"Hmmm," she murmured with a smile, nuzzling into his arms. "Did you kill Cassidy?" she mumbled.

"No," he said with a laugh. "Not that I wasn't tempted. He kept asking about our sex life, and about...forget it, it's not important. Thank God you only slept with him once," he said, kissing her on the forehead.

"Mmm hmm," she hummed, nodding into the crook of his neck. Then she mumbled something he couldn't quite understand.

"Did you just say 'bacon bits'? If you want bacon bits I'll go..."

She laughed, waking up a little. "No, El. I said, I faked it. With Cassidy. He...couldn't do it. And he was making an ass out of himself. I needed to put him out of his misery." She wrapped her arms around him and snuggled closer.

Elliot furrowed his brow. "Liv, you've never...uh..."

"No," she said, before he could finish the question. "I've _never_ had to fake an orgasm with you, honey. Every single time, it's all you and it's all real." She looked up at and smirked. "And it's always more than one."

"I aim to please," he said, with his cocky attitude.

Olivia smiled and chuckled. "You always do, baby." She pressed her lips to his, letting them linger there for a moment. "You get the bad guy?"

Elliot nodded. "Fin and Munch are interrogating him," he said, skimming his hand down Olivia's back. "I needed to see you." His face grew serious, and he held on to her, tighter.

Something in his voice made her sit up and look down at him. "El, what..."

"The vic...the girl, she was pregnant, Liv. And...now she's not. And it's all his fault. As soon as we got back I needed to see you, and Joshie, and know that you were both safe and tell you how much I love you and I am never going to let anything or anyone hurt you." Elliot looked into Olivia's eyes and she could see that he was fighting, so hard, the urge to cry. "He just...beat the...how could he..."

"Shh, El," Olivia pulled him up so he was sitting with her and pressed his head to her shoulder. "Baby, we've seen that before, a lot of times. God, in the last three years..."

"I know, but it's different now. I looked at her and I saw you," he admitted. "I couldn't help it." He blinked and shook his head, lifting it to look at her. "I'm fine, though, I'm good. How are _you_ feeling? I heard we might have ourselves a star soccer player."

Olivia ran her hands through his hair and kissed the top of his head. "He is one hell of a kicker. I'm better now, the nap helped." She made a face and seethed. "Okay, spoke too soon. I think he's excited because he hears his daddy," she said. "Gimme your hand." She took Elliot's palm and placed it over a spot on her bump, under her belly-button. Elliot laughed as he felt a tiny nudge. "This is the most amazing feeling, El."

Elliot nodded, laughing again. "I know, he's moving around in there and..."

"No," she interrupted him. "_Love_. Family. You. Me. The kids. This baby. All of it. Nine months ago, I was just dreaming about all of this with you."

Elliot pulled her toward him and kissed her, wrapping his arms around her. "Liv, baby, it's the best feeling in the world." He leaned in to kiss her once more and felt the baby kick again, hitting him in the side, barely. "Hey, Joshie, I'm not hurting Mommy," he joked. "Liv, are you sure he couldn't feel..."

"El, he can't feel _anything_ in there," she said rolling her eyes. "You need to stop asking." They chuckled together as they kissed, completely unaware that someone had been watching them for quite some time. Someone who, though hurt and jealous, just couldn't bring himself to be mad or vengeful.

Cassidy smiled to himself as he quietly closed the door, knowing that they were about to do something he shouldn't be watching, and walked back down the steps.

"What's up, Cassidy?" Fin asked.

Cassidy shook his head. "Nothing. Just thinking. Those two, uh, it was kinda unavoidable wasn't it?"

"You have no idea," Munch chimed in.

Cassidy smiled sadly. "I do, actually. I'll be right back."

"Where ya goin'?" Fin asked, a bit irritated.

Cassidy turned and smirked. "To get them a late wedding gift." He walked out of the bullpen and down the hall, out of the precinct, knowing exactly where he was heading and exactly what he was bringing back.

**A/N: Whaa?? What does Cassidy get them? Is he seriously happy for them? Only time will tell! Reviews? You guys are so awesome!**


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: What's Cassidy's gift? Is he really over Olivia? Tucker shows up with a big surprise!**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"What is it?" Olivia asked, tilting her head, eating a banana.

Elliot shrugged. "Um, is it upside down?"

Cassidy scoffed. "No, it's not upside down! Olivia you should know exactly what this is!"

"Oh. My. God. You did not just give us this as our wedding present, Cassidy," Olivia said, narrowing her eyes.

"Yeah! I mean, you really liked it! You couldn't stop staring at it!" Cassidy grinned at her, widely.

"Because it was on your ceiling! If it's three in the morning and you're in some guy's bed, feeling very uncomfortable and wanting nothing more than to call your partner, but you don't because he'll make fun of you, for years, you'll stare at whatever the hell is up there!" she explained, dipping the banana into a cup of chocolate sauce, then biting it.

Cassidy paled. "You...but you...this is a very expensive painting! It's an original Werzcyz!"

"God bless you," Olivia quipped. She walked back to her desk and picked up the phone as Elliot calmly thanked Cassidy for the thought but told him to take the painting back to his place. Olivia dialed Alex's number. "Hey, it's me. You got it? Everything? Thanks. No, we're gonna pick them up now."

Elliot walked over and wrapped his arms around her. "You ready?"

"Yes, I am. I need to pee first. Joshie thinks my bladder is a trampoline," she said, finishing her banana and handing him the peel. Elliot laughed as she headed into the bathroom.

Fin grabbed his jacket. "Your wife really needs to stop over-sharing, Stabler."

"I can't control what comes out of her mouth anymore than I can control what goes into it," he spat, holding up the chocolaty peel. "Yo, Cap!"

"I'm coming," Cragen said. "It isn't easy getting all of our calls forwarded to another precinct, Elliot, you gotta gimme a second!"

Olivia came back and looked at Elliot. "Come here," she said, smirking. He walked over to her and she whispered something into his ear.

"Liv, that is so wrong!" Elliot scolded, but he had a gleam in his eyes and a shit-eating grin on his face. "Maybe," he said.

Olivia smiled. "So, that's a yes."

"No, it's a...yeah, it's a yes. Come on, then. We're gonna be late," Elliot said, pulling Olivia out of the bullpen. "We'll see you all there!" he yelled as they left.

They ran down the hall, snickering and nervous, waiting for the elevator. "Are we really gonna do this?" Olivia asked.

"Hey, it was your idea, you little minx. You got the idea and image in my head, so yes. We're doing this." Elliot hit the door to elevator. "Hurry up, fucker!"

Finally, the doors opened and they stepped in, thankful that no one else was on it. Elliot rolled his eyes up to look at the camera. "So, when the elevator stops the camera goes off, too, right?"

"That's how it'll happen, just hit the right numbers," Olivia said.

"I married the computer hacker from hell and I'm reaping the benefits," Elliot muttered. He pushed a sequence of numbers in the floor-buttons and the elevator stopped. He looked up at the camera and the red light was off. "How the hell did you do that?"

"Simple computer programming, El," she said. Then she grabbed him by the tie and pulled him toward her, surprising him. "Now, kiss me."

Elliot chuckled and kissed her, pressing her up against the elevator wall. "How long do we have?"

"Thirty minutes. Then everything comes back on," Olivia said, unbuckling his belt and pulling down his pants. "We start moving, the camera starts recording, we get into a shitload of trouble."

"Well, then, we have to skip the foreplay, baby." Elliot pulled down her pants and thrust into her, quickly and deeply. They were gonna be late to their own kids birthday party, and they didn't seem to care.

* * *

"Just open the door, Dickie," Maureen yelled, her arms filled with bags.

"Why are we celebrating Uncle Munch's birthday now? Isn't his birthday in, like, January?" the boy asked.

Once the Stablers were all inside, Elliot flicked on the light and the entire 1-6, and all of their family, yelled, "Surprise!"

Olivia pointed up to the large banner hanging in the banquet hall and leaned over to the twins. "It's not for Uncle Munch. It's for you two."

Lizzie and Dickie suddenly yelled and turned to hug her. "This is so awesome!" Lizzie squealed. They ran to Elliot and hugged him, too. "Dickie, our whole class is here!" Lizzie ran over to her friends, pulling her brother along.

"I think they like it," Elliot said, wrapping his arms around Olivia.

"Ya think?" Olivia quipped.

Elliot ran his hands over her belly and felt Josh kick. "I will never stop loving this," he said, trying to follow the kicks with his hand. "Be prepared to go through all of this again, baby."

"It's really not that bad! A backache, swollen feet, I like bananas now, and I have to pee a lot. The only other side effects are," she dropped her voice to a whisper, "constant need for sex with my amazing husband," returning to a normal volume as he laughed she continued, "and a bouncing, baby boy. I can definitely do this again," Olivia said, smiling, as she pulled his face closer and kissed him.

Kathleen walked over to them with two cups, a beer for Elliot and juice for Olivia, and smiled. "This was an amazing idea. Look at the two little dweebs."

"They're not dweebs," Elliot scolded.

"I know," Kathleen admitted. "I just think doing something huge like this for them made them realize they weren't being replaced or forgotten, because up until now, they were the babies. Plus, they were used to being ignored by Kathy. Now, they have a mother who loves them, and they weren't ready to share just yet. They needed this."

Elliot and Olivia looked at Kathleen with confused and heartbroken eyes. "Why," Olivia began, "Would they ever think they were being replaced or forgotten?"

"I never neglected any of you when your brother or sister was born," Elliot added.

Kathleen shrugged, "You didn't, Dad. Kathy did. And they were just afraid that since they're not really Olivia's…"

"Hold it, right there." Olivia marched over to the twins, who were in the middle of a game of Pop-Snap-Shoot with their friends, and pulled them aside, gently. "Hey, I need to talk to you two for a second."

"What's up, Mom?" Dickie asked.

"Exactly. _Mom._ I love you both, so very much. And this baby is going to be an addition, not a division. Understand? I promise you, your father and I are not going to love Joshie any more than we love you, and we're not going to forget about you, or ignore you. I've always loved you like my own, and as far as I'm concerned, that's exactly what you are."

Lizzie threw her arms around Olivia and peppered her with kisses. "Best birthday ever," she said, smiling. "Thanks, Mom."

"Love you," Dickie said.

"I just wanted you to know that," Olivia said. "Go play." She samcked her twins on the butts as they ran back to their friends and turned, only to walk right into Cassidy.

"Hey, Olivia," he said with a smirk

Olivia smiled, politely. "Hi, Cassidy."

"Ya know, you used to call me 'Brian,'" he told her, sipping his beer.

"Well, that was a long time ago, and things were a lot different. I only called you 'Brian' for like, six months, it was weird." Olivia began to walk away, but Cassidy stopped her.

"Come on, Benson, what gives? One night? That's all I was good for? I thought we had a lot of fun," he said, running his hand up her arm.

Olivia pulled her arm away and laughed, hoping he was just joking. "Stabler! It's not Benson, it's Stabler. Um, yeah. Fun. It was one night, because that's all it was meant to be, Cassidy. It was one night, almost three years ago," she said. "Things have changed. I've changed."

Cassidy leaned in, inhaling deeply. "You smell the same, you look the same, except for that baby, which only makes you sexier, believe it or not. Nothing's really changed."

"Wow, you're creepy," Olivia said, taking a step back. "A lot's changed. I'm married, pregnant, and absolutely not interested in you."

Cassidy pulled Olivia toward him. "Oh, you will be, Olivia."

Elliot came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back to him, narrowing his eyes at Cassidy as he kissed Olivia's cheek. "Is there a problem here?"

"No, not at all. Just catching up," Cassidy said.

Elliot scoffed. "Go catch up with Marla from Computer Crimes, she actually likes you."

Cassidy shrugged, smirked at Olivia and walked away, drinking his beer.

"Are you okay?" Elliot asked, turning Olivia to face him.

"Yeah, of course. He's harmless. He's stupid and really creepy, but harmless," Olivia declared. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close. "I love you," she whispered into his ear.

"I love you, too, baby," Elliot said. He lowered his voice and said, in a warning tone, "I'm gonna make sure you're never left alone with that guy."

Olivia rolled her eyes at her husband's typical overreaction and over-protectiveness. "How do you plan on doing that?"

"By never leaving you alone, period," he said with a shit-eating grin and a wink. "Come on, baby. Don's bringing out the cake, and Tucker has some kind of surprise for the kids."

Olivia kissed him as they turned to head toward the cake-table, forgetting all about her brief, creepy encounter with Cassidy. They watched as Cragen brought out a large cake, decorated with the only common interest of the twins, music notes. It said "Happy Eleventh Birthday," with no names, to avoid the "Why is your name first?" argument, and there were twelve black and white candles lit up around the edges. One was for good luck.

Lizzie and Dickie ran over and stood by their parents as the people in the hall sang the silly song to them, and they laughed as they competed to see who could blow out their half of the candles first. Lizzie won. Dickie said it was because she was full of hot air.

Ed Tucker helped Don cut the cake and pass it around, and then he stood up and took two envelopes out of his pockets and walked over to the twins, who were happily eating their cake with the rest of the Stabler clan. "Hey, you two!" he said, kneeling in between their chairs.

"Hi, Grandpa Ed," Lizzie said.

Tucker held the envelopes out to the twins, and smiled. "Happy birthday, guys. You have to give this to your parents now, but in a couple of years, you can do whatever you want with it."

"What is it?" Dickie asked, pulling the slip of paper out of the envelope.

Olivia saw it and almost yelped. Her hand shot to her mouth. "Ed, that's really not…"

"Hey, Olivia, I missed ten birthdays. The other kids have one coming to them on their next birthdays, too, and that little guy," he said, pointing to her bump, "Will get one on the day he's born. I've been setting all of this aside, hoping that I'd get the chance to give it to them before I had to leave it to them in my will. I'm getting that chance, and I'm taking it."

"Okay," Dickie said, "But what is it?"

Elliot looked down at his son and smiled. "It's a saving's bond, Dickie. Right now, it's just a piece of paper. But, when you turn eighteen, um, you're gonna be the proud owner of twenty-five-thousand dollars."

Lizzie and Dickie looked at each other, then up at their parents, and then at Ed Tucker. They smiled and started laughing as they gave him a huge hug. "Thank you!" they squealed in unison.

Elliot and Olivia held each other close, thankful for such an amazing gift, which would be going to their college educations. They kissed sweetly, and the surge of jealousy coursing in the veins of the man watching idly in the corner made him realize that the only way to get what he wanted, was to eliminate the obstacles.

**A/N: Doink Doink! Promise you, nothing terrible will happen, lol. Reviews keep me writing! Want 31? Lemme know!**


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: Cassidy puts his brilliant plan into effect. It backfires. Horribly. I owe all of my thanks to the readers who have reviewed and favorited/alerted me and my stories. Love to you all!**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

Elliot's phone rang in the middle of the night, causing a great groan of frustration. "Sorry, baby," he said to Olivia, who moaned as he pulled out of her and answered the phone. "Stabler," he snapped. "Sorry, Cassidy, you just, uh, woke us up. Yes, Liv was sleeping. She's pregnant, you know? Yeah, yeah, I'll be right there." He snapped his phone shut and kissed Olivia. "I gotta go."

"I hate that you can say 'I' and not 'we.' I hate that you have go without me," Olivia whined.

"It's only for another month, baby," Elliot said. "Then you'll be on leave, anyway, which I think I can manage to get time off for. And then we'll both be home for a while, with Joshie, and then we'll be back to work, kicking ass and taking names." He pulled up his jeans and tugged on a shirt.

"El, baby, be careful. Where are you going?" she asked.

Elliot loved that she was so concerned. If it was his ex, he'd blow her off, but he always needed to tell Olivia. "Warehouse on Fifty-Third. Sexual assault in progress, neighbors called nine-one-one," he said. "I love you," he said kissing her again. "And I love you," he said, placing a kiss to her baby-bump. "I will see you back at the station."

* * *

He was frustrated beyond belief. Sexually, because that call interrupted an amazing romp with his wife, and mentally, because he was entering the warehouse with Cassidy, who wouldn't stop nagging him about his wife's killer body. "Fuck, Cassidy, I know my wife is hot! Thank you!" he finally yelled.

Cassidy laughed. "I knew I'd get a rise out of you, Stabler. So, how did you get her to marry you? Did you get her drunk?"

Elliot rolled his eyes and raised his gun. "No, just shut up and look for any sign of an assault in progress."

"Well, Stabler," Cassidy said, smirking. "Here's a sign."

"What?" Elliot turned, confused, and was even more disoriented when Cassidy slugged him, right in the left eye.

Cassidy chortled as Elliot reared back. "Assault, in progress," Cassidy spat. He took another good swing at Elliot, landing the punch to his right cheek with another hearty laugh.

* * *

Olivia walked into the bullpen, eating grapefruit slices, and rubbing her belly. "Josh hates bananas."

"What?" Munch asked with a light chuckle.

"That's why he's been getting the hiccups. It was the bananas. Where's Elliot?" Olivia sat at her desk, rubbing her belly in light circles.

Fin looked up at her, smiling at how cute she looked. "He didn't come in with you?"

"No, Cassidy called him at around three this morning, telling him to meet him at a warehouse on Fifty-Third," Olivia said with a furrowed brow.

"I've been here all night," Fin said. "We didn't get a call through the main line."

Olivia's eyes widened. "Hey, Cap?" she yelled.

Cragen opened his office door and walked out. "Yeah?"

"Did you send Cassidy and Elliot anywhere? A one-thirty in progress, around three in the morning?" Munch asked.

"No, we haven't had a call all day. It's been slow, why?" Cragen asked, folding his arms.

Olivia rose to her feet, panicking. "He's gonna hurt him. No, he's gonna kill him! We gotta go," she cried.

"Uh, excuse me, Mrs. Stabler, who is starting look like she swallowed a large basketball, you are staying here with Cragen. Fin and I will go find them, okay? I'm sure he's fine. Elliot's fine," Munch assured her.

Olivia nodded. "I know! I meant, Elliot's gonna kill Cassidy!" she yelled, watching Fin and Munch run out to find the wayward detectives.

* * *

"Are you finished?" Elliot asked, pulling Cassidy's arms behind his back and yanking. They had scuffled for a while, and after Elliot got his bearings, he dodged every punch Cassidy threw and overcame him. He got tired of fighting so he put him in a hold, in an attempt to calm him down. "Stop it, man," Elliot yelled, yanking harder.

Cassidy howled in pain. "Let me go," he cried.

"No way in hell!" Elliot yelled. "You dragged me out of bed, at three A.M., luring me to an abandoned warehouse. We spent the last three hours running around this building and fighting. You shot at me, you fucker. You brought me here so you could, what, kill me?"

Cassidy scoffed. "That was the plan, yeah. I didn't think you'd be so fucking fast."

"Why?" Elliot asked, slamming Cassidy into the wall.

"I want Olivia, I want my job back, and I want your life, Stabler" Cassidy said. He threw his head back and clocked Elliot in the nose. It caused Elliot to let him go and back up, bringing his hands to his face. "And you're the only thing standing in my way," Cassidy said, now aiming his gun at Elliot.

* * *

"Is this it?" Fin asked, pulling up to a shoddy looking building.

Munch shrugged getting out of the car. "It has to be. It's the only warehouse on this street."

They were on their way inside when they heard three gunshots.

"Oh, fuck!" Fin yelled. He and Munch sprang into a run and bolted into the building. "Elliot!" he yelled. "Stabler, man, where are you, bro?"

"Elliot?" Munch called.

"Over there," Fin said, aiming his gun at a corner. He and Munch ran toward the shadowy figures, one looming ominously over another that seemed to be crumpled on the floor. "Elliot?" Fin called.

"Yeah," he replied, his voice soft, weak.

Munch and Fin looked down at the limp, lifeless body of Brian Cassidy, his gun still clutched in his hand. "What happened?" Munch asked. He looked up at Elliot and saw the bloody nose, split lip and gunshot wounds. "Shit, Elliot! What the hell happened?"

"He tried to...he was gonna kill me. Then he said he was gonna...take Liv, and Josh, and he shot me so I...I shot him. I didn't mean to kill him," Elliot said, dazed.

Fin took him by the wrist. "Come on, bro. Let's get you outta here, we'll call Tucker and Cragen and your wife and we'll get this all over with."

Elliot nodded as he weakly allowed himself to be pulled out of the building.

* * *

He was sitting, still dazed, on the back of the ambulance, when Olivia ran over to him. His eye widened and he leaped to his feet, annoying the pants off of the EMT trying to mend his bullet wound in the arm. He wrapped his arms around her and she squeezed him tight. Josh gave a swift kick. "I know, baby, I know," he said, to both his wife and son, as he held them close.

"Fin told me what happened," Olivia said, tracing his bandaged knuckles with her finger. "Ed's got your gun. He didn't want to involve me, but I told him what Cassidy had been doing, and you'll give him your statement, too. This was clearly self-defense," she said, trying to calm herself down more than him.

"Liv, baby, it's okay. It's okay, calm down. You're shaking," Elliot said, running his hands down her back in long strokes, soothing her.

"I told them you were gonna kill him," she whispered. "I knew. I knew when Cragen said he didn't call you out here that Cassidy was gonna try to hurt you and you'd kill him."

Tucker and Cragen walked over to them, professional faces plastered on, and Elliot shook their hands. "Stabler," Cragen said, "We know, by your injuries and the fact that Cassidy's gun was, in fact, fired, at you, obviously, that this was self defense."

"We're not filing charges," Tucker said, "But, we do need you to sit in on a session, record your statement. This has to go in your jacket as an excessive force incident with a notice of SD attached."

"Of course," Elliot said, refusing to let go of Olivia.

"You'll have to do this now, Elliot," Cragen said. "If you want IAB to clear you, completely, by tomorrow."

Tucker jerked his head toward the ambulance. "Finish getting patched up, then I will drive you back to the station. Fitzgerald will take your statement."

Elliot nodded, kissed Olivia on her head and limped back to the waiting and frustrated EMT.

* * *

"When's Dad coming home?" Dickie asked, looking up at Olivia from the floor of the living room.

Olivia brushed his hair back. "Whenever the mean old IAB people and your Grandpa Ed are done talking to him," she said.

"What did he do, anyway?" Maureen asked, sitting next to Olivia and offering a bowl of popcorn to her.

Taking a handful of the snack, Olivia said, "Um, he got into a fight with another detective." She left out who it was, and the fact that he was now dead. The kids didn't need to know that their father had just killed someone.

Kathleen pushed play on the DVD remote and leaned her head on Olivia's knee. "Is Daddy in a lot of trouble?"

"No," Olivia said. "At least, I hope not."

The movie was halfway over, three out of four kids were asleep and Olivia was getting ready to call Cragen to have Fin and Munch go look for him again when he walked through the door. "El?" she called as she heard the door open. It had to be him, no one else had a key, but she was on edge.

"Yeah, baby," he said as he stepped into the living room. "It's me. What did I miss?" he asked as he looked around the room.

Kathleen mumbled, her face still pressed into Olivia's lap, "_Retribution Avenue_ is the world's most boring movie. All of the exciting parts were in the previews, and the hot guy died in the first five minutes. Now, we're watching his pissed off, ugly girlfriend kill everyone on the street, in really, really boring ways. She seriously just talked a guy to death."

"Why are you still watching it?" Elliot asked with a laugh.

"I feel like if I don't see how it ends, it'll bug me forever," Kathleen blathered. "My momma didn't raise no quitter," she added, patting Olivia's leg.

Olivia laughed. "I certainly did not," she said. "But, apparently, I am raising the next David Beckham. Josh won't stop kicking, and he keeps aiming for the bladder. Katie, honey, move your head, I have to pee."

Kathleen moved and plopped onto the floor, resolving to watch the rest of the pathetic film.

Olivia pulled Elliot into the first floor bathroom with her. "What happened?" she asked.

"I thought you had to pee," he said, raising an eyebrow.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "I do! I will. Now, what happened?"

Elliot sighed. "Self-defense. No charges, no suspension, no nothing. Just guilt," he said, dropping his head to Olivia's shoulder. "He told me what he was gonna do to you and the baby and I lost it, Liv. He shot me, twice, and training told me to shoot him in the leg and the arm, just like he did to me, but I didn't. I shot him in the fucking chest. Right through the goddamn heart. I killed him, baby. We knew him, he used to be our friend. He..."

"El, baby, he was gonna kill you, and then he was gonna come after me and the kids. You were protecting yourself and your family. Do not," she paused and pushed his head up, forcing him to look at her. "El, listen to me, baby, do not feel guilty about that!" she said to him, scratching the back of his neck lightly. "He changed, El. He wasn't the same guy we knew, and he was dangerous. You didn't do anything wrong."

Elliot nodded. "You're right, I know that." He took a deep breath and looked into his wife's eyes, smiling. "I love you, Liv."

"I love you, too, El," Olivia replied, smiling back at him.

"I'm gonna get outta here, let you pee, get the kids up to their rooms, and then we are gonna finish what we started this morning. We don't have to worry about work tomorrow," he said with a wink.

Olivia raised her eyebrows and grinned expectantly. "Angry sex?"

Elliot laughed. "Oh, if you would have been there right after I finished beating the shit out of Cassidy, you would have gotten angry sex, but no, baby. Just endless hours of amazing, happy, relieved, I-love-my-wife sex."

"My favorite," Olivia said, pressing a sweet kiss to his lips.

Elliot walked out of the bathroom and headed into the living room, grinning like a fox, as he ushered his kids upstairs and waited, impatiently, in his bedroom for his wife.

**A/N: Next chap, a fun Sunday with the family! Lighthearted and...perhaps...smutty? Reviews are awesome, as are the readers who leave them. And the ones who don't. =)  
**


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: Sunday Family Fun! A bit of smutty fluff, or fluffy smut, flut, smuff? Whatever. It relieves all of the tension from the drama of the last chapter! And the next one...**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story**

"Okay," Elliot said, leaving the cathedral with his family. "Breakfast and Church have been checked off, what is left on our Sunday To-Do list?"

Dickie raised his hand and shouted, "The park!"

"The mall!" Kathleen and Maureen yelled together.

Lizzie smiled. "The bookstore!"

Olivia leaned into Elliot and whispered, "The bedroom."

"I like Mommy's idea," Elliot said, smirking. "But, we have to do that later. Okay, so in order, bookstore, mall, park and...Mommy's idea."

"What does Mom want to do?" Maureen asked.

Olivia snickered and leaned over to Elliot, again. "Daddy," she whispered, her eyebrows wagging.

"Woman, you're gonna be the death of me," Elliot said, getting into the driver's seat of the SUV.

Olivia laughed as she climbed in and winked at her husband. "Drive, Stabler," she commanded. And they were off.

* * *

Lizzie roamed the literature section, Dickie browsed the comic books, Maureen and Kathleen poured through the magazines and Olivia and Elliot waited in the café. "How's your arm?" Olivia asked, sipping her steamed milk.

"Eh, the same at it is every time I get shot," he said with a shrug.

"And your leg?" she asked, toeing at his ankle.

Elliot tilted his head and smirked. "Are you...we are not playing footsie at the bookstore right now, are we?"

"No, why?" she asked, stone-faced.

"Never mind. My leg's fine. Bullet just grazed...what are you doing? I thought you just said we weren't...Liv, don't go there," he warned, feeling her foot climb higher.

Olivia, collected and poised, drinking her milk, said, "You asked if we were playing footsie. I said 'no.' _I'm_ playing, you're just sitting there and...oh, hello!" He wasted no time and got right to the fucking point.

"Daddy?"

At the sound of Lizzie's voice their feet dropped to the floor and they sat up straight. "Yeah, pumpkin?" Elliot asked, clearing his throat and putting his shoe back on.

"How much are we each allowed to spend?" Her face was completely hidden by a stack of books.

"Twenty bucks," Elliot said, sipping his coffee, staring wide-eyed at the young-girl and her arm-fuls of paperbacks.

Lizzie groaned. "I have to go put ten of these back? Not cool, Dad."

"Daddy!" Maureen cried, running over to the table. "You and Mom are in _New York Life _magazine!" She flipped through the pages, turning to an article, written by one of their former victim's, that not only thanked the detectives, but praised them. There were several accompanying pictures, including some that had been in the paper, and a small blue column with their wedding photo and a little blurb about their love-story. "You're practically famous! Mommy, she called you the most beautiful person she's ever met, both inside and out."

Elliot and Olivia got up and walked over to the counter, immediately buying the magazine.

* * *

"How many pairs of jeans do you think you're allowed to get, Mo?" Elliot asked, watching his daughter carry no less than seven pairs to the register.

"Um, this many," Maureen said, flatly.

Olivia laughed and shook her head. "Oh no, put six of them down. Now."

"Mom! I..." she saw the look she was getting. "Okay, okay."

Olivia handed Maureen two twenty-dollar bills. "I want the change, Mo. I know how much those cost."

Dickie ran over to Elliot, holding up an odd looking item of clothing. "Dad, what is this?"

"Uh, well, I...Liv?" He turned to his wife and held it up. "Shirt? Skirt? Headband? What?"

"It's a tube top, El. It's a shirt with no sleeves, no collar, no point," Olivia said. "I wore them all the time in college. I wore a lot of things in college that I will never wear again, thank you, Joshua."

Elliot laughed. "You'll get your body back, baby. We have a gym in the precinct. Besides, uh," he wrapped his arms around her and winked. "We're getting plenty of, uh, exercise now, so maybe you haven't really lost your body. It's just buried under a pile of baby."

"We'll find out in seven weeks," Olivia said, running a hand over her belly. "Seven weeks! Oh, my God!" She laughed, and her face lit up.

"Yeah," Elliot said, rubbing her belly. "Then we get to hold him, and love him, and let him meet the world."

"Mom," Dickie called. "What's this?" he asked, putting another odd item of clothing on his head.

"Uh, well, I guess now it's a hat," Olivia said with a laugh.

"Mom," Kathleen said, strolling up to her. "This isn't a maternity top, but it's blue and it's got an empire waist and it's flowy. I think it would look so beautiful...what did I do? Why is she crying, Dad?"

Elliot chuckled. "She's emotional because of the baby, Katie. She's just very happy and moved that you thought about her, and it's a really nice shirt. Here," he said handing her a twenty. "Go pay for it." When Kathleen walked away he turned instantly to Olivia, panicking. "Baby, why are you crying?"

"We have amazing kids," she said, wiping her eyes and sniffling.

"Yeah, baby, we do," Elliot replied, placing a kiss to her forehead. "In seven weeks, we'll have another one."

* * *

"Dickie, don't climb over your sister!" Olivia yelled.

"She's in my way!" the boy yelled back.

"Go around her, or ask her to move because she's only going to...punch you," Olivia said, shaking her head. "Didn't even get the words out of my mouth."

Elliot laughed as he rubbed her belly from his spot behind her on the grass. "You're amazing," he whispered in her ear.

"Only because I surround myself with amazing people," she said, nuzzling him.

"I mean it, Liv. You have changed their lives. You're the best mother they could possibly have, and for three years, you've been slowly turning me into the best man I could possibly be. And now, you're giving me this boy," he told her, resting his head on her shoulder.

Olivia chuckled. "Technically, you gave him to me. You've changed my life, too, El. I'm a better woman because of you and those babies. And this one," she said, linking her hand with his over her bump.

"Dickie!" they both yelled at the boy. "Get off of your sister!"

They laughed at their simultaneous yelling and shook their heads. "And there went the romantic moment," Olivia said.

"We've got plenty of time for romance, Liv," Elliot said, kissing her. "We've got our whole lives."

* * *

Olivia padded into the bedroom, rubbing her belly. "I thought Sunday was supposed to be a day of rest," she said, sitting on the mattress.

"I am exhausted and I just realized we spent two-hundred-and-eighty dollars today," Elliot groaned.

"What? How?" Olivia asked.

Elliot pulled down the sheets and then took off his sweatpants. Olivia didn't seem to notice or care. He explained as he crawled into the bed. "Well, seventy at the bookstore, ten at the café in the bookstore, lunch came to seventy-five, sixty at the mall, fifteen dollars worth of ice cream and bottled water at the park and dinner came to fifty bucks."

Olivia shook her head as she climbed under the covers. "Can we really afford to do this every Sunday?"

Elliot chuckled and pulled Olivia on top of him. She realized he was naked. "Yeah, you can't put a price tag on family Sundays, Liv." He pulled her cotton nightgown off over her head and ran his hands over her body.

"What are you doing?" Olivia laughed.

Elliot peppered her with kisses as he said, "We went to the bookstore and the mall and the park, and now we're in the..."

"Bedroom," Olivia finished with a smirk.

"We're doing what Mommy wanted to do today," he said, kissing her and nipping at her lips.

Olivia yelped as Elliot rolled them over. "Mommy and Daddy have work in the morning," she breathed. "And right now, Mommy's thinking if we start, this isn't gonna end anytime soon."

Elliot, taking a nipple into his mouth, hummed as Olivia moaned. "We've gone without sleep before, baby," he muttered, rolling the rosy bud between his teeth.

"Oh, God," Olivia cried, feeling Elliot's fingers swipe through her folds. She bucked her hips and me moved his hand, laughing. "Oh, you bastard."

"Not so fast, Liv," Elliot said, running his fingertips lightly along her thigh, making her squirm. "You gotta want it."

Olivia rolled her eyes and bit her lip. "You just felt…"

"Tell me, baby." Elliot dipped one finger in, watched her eyes widen as she gasped, and pulled it out, smirking. "Tell me you want it, Liv."

Olivia gripped the sheets. She nodded when she felt Elliot dip his finger into her again, quickly pulling it out, as he bent his head to kiss her. She attacked his mouth and kept nodding.

"No, Liv," he said against her lips. "Tell me."

"I want it. I want you. Make love to me, El," she whispered to him, running her hands up his arms and nibbling on his lip.

Elliot smirked. "That's my girl," he praised. He propped himself up, over her, and kissed her tenderly while he eased into her, slowly, savoring the feeling of the first contact the way he did every time.

The groans that accompanied their connection were always ones of relief, like the noises they would make while getting into a hot bath after spending three hours shoveling the driveway during a blizzard. Tonight was no exception.

Olivia's hands looped around Elliot's neck and she pulled him closer. She deepened their kiss as he deepened his thrusts, and she made light, mewing sounds, raking her nails over his back, leaving angry red tracks in their wake.

"Holy…" anything after that was lost. Elliot gasped and grunted and pressed his lips to Olivia's neck, sucking lightly in time with her rapid pulse and his rapid pummeling. "Liv, baby," he moaned. "So good."

"Yes," Olivia panted softly in response. "Yes, El, God, yes," she breathed, moving with him as he slid out and pushed in, bringing them closer to nirvana.

"God, I love you, baby," Elliot whispered to her, brushing his lips over hers as he thrust deeper. He kissed her, fervently, and felt her clench around him. He felt her fingertips dig into the flesh of his sides.

Olivia pulled him into her, holding onto him tightly, her knuckles turning white. "I love you, El," she said on a breath, and her eyes fluttered closed. Her head flew back into the pillow behind her.

"No, up here," Elliot ordered. "Eyes up and open, look at me, baby." He was demanding, insistent.

Olivia groaned, almost a complaint. As she picked up her head and opened her eyes and the moment she met those deep blue-topaz eyes, she clamped down and came undone with a feral, growling cry of his name and an intense, vibrating shake.

Elliot was close behind, looking into her open pools of hot chocolate, he drove into her twice and spilled inside of her with a powerful grunt and a string of "Oh, God's" and "Liv's" and he stilled all movement when he lost his vision.

Olivia, panting beneath him, wriggled a bit. Joshua kicked, as if saying, "You're done, get the hell off of me."

Elliot chuckled and rolled off of her, pulling her half-way on top of him. He absent-mindedly rubbed her just-barely-seven-month bump, in slow loving circles, and kissed the top of her head. "I fucking love Sundays," he said, with an exhausted sigh.

Olivia looked up at him and chuckled, kissed the tip of his nose and shook her head. She leaned her head back on his chest and said, softly, "It's Monday, El."

**A/N: Next: A new case, and how does the precinct handle working with three detectives? How does the squad cope when tragedy strikes?**


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: A tragedy hits the squad, right before Olivia starts her leave. How will the squad cope?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story**

"Oh, no, it's fine, I'll just sit here and do nothing while you three save the world," Olivia barked, biting into an apple.

"That's the idea, baby," Elliot said. "You are now our official paperwork goddess." He handed her a stack of DD5's and grinned.

Olivia scowled at him. "One more wisecrack and see if you ever touch me again," she spat, signing the forms and filing them away.

"You couldn't last an hour without me touching you," Elliot said, his eyes narrow.

"Yeah, I could," she said. "Any longer and I might go insane, but an hour is doable."

Munch and Fin chuckled. It was nice having them bicker and quip. Olivia wasn't an angry pregnant woman, she was just regular, old Olivia, only slightly rounder and more emotional. "Hey, this is your last week, right?" Munch said to Olivia.

"Don't remind me," Olivia said. She signed another DD5 and put it on the "done" pile. "I don't know what I'm gonna do at home. I get slightly cranky when I'm not working."

"Slightly?" Elliot asked, eyes wide. "You get downright bitchy, baby. But, trust me, you will be very busy at home."

"No, El, for the first month, I'm just gonna be lying on the couch, or in bed, watching soap operas and reading and..."

Munch interrupted her. "Can we get a move on with this male pregnancy thing? I think I like the sound of maternity leave."

Fin turned his head. "Hey, Stabler, aren't you gonna be home with her?"

"Yeah, the, uh, last two weeks of her last month and then the first three months after Josh is born, we're both taking off to just be parents," Elliot said, smiling at Olivia. "I can't wait."

Munch sighed. "So, then, it's just gonna be me and Fin for three fucking months? Thanks, a lot!"

"Actually, no, it'll be you, Fin and two subs from the two-nine," Cragen said, coming out of his office. "And once Josh is three months old, we get them back and they'd better be ready to kick some major bad-guy ass!"

Elliot and Olivia chuckled, glancing at each other, as the phone on Elliot's desk rang. "Stabler," he said, his voice sounding happy. He went pale in seconds. "Okay, Mel, calm down. No, we'll be there. We will be right there." He slammed the phone down and got out of his seat. "We have to get to Rikers, now!"

Munch got up and grabbed his jacket, asking, "Why? What happened?"

Elliot squeezed the bridge of nose. "Warner was called to examine a body, and when she got there, she, uh, she called us. It's Huang."

* * *

Warner was unable to finish her examination. She called one of her assistants, and he came and finished the job. When Cragen and Munch arrived, she could still talk, and told them what happened. But, once Elliot and Olivia walked in, she broke down. She ran to Olivia and cried. Olivia, too, sobbed uncontrollably while Elliot, trying to hold his own emotions in, rubbed her back.

"I know, baby," Elliot cooed.

Olivia sniffled, gripped Melinda tighter and asked, softly, "What happened?"

"He was...with a patient, and...the guy flipped. George was just talking to him and then...he was choked," Melinda coughed out through her cries.

"Olivia!" a male voice from the cell behind them yelled.

Elliot and Olivia turned and faced Simon, in his cell, a joyful expression on his face. "Oh, my God, your belly! How are you feeling?"

"Marsden!" a guard yelled, "Back up and shut up!"

"She's my sister," Simon told the man, shaking his head. "She's my sister!"

The guard spat and smirked. "I don't care if she's the motherfucking Queen of England, back up, shut up."

"I saw what happened!" Simon shouted, at Elliot, with pleading eyes.

Elliot rolled his eyes, gave Olivia's shoulder a squeeze and grabbed one of the homicide detectives and Cragen. He kissed his wife and said, "Liv, get Mel out of here. I'll deal with this."

Olivia nodded, wrapped her arm around Melinda's shoulders and followed a guard out of the cell block.

* * *

The bullpen was quiet and cold when Elliot and Cragen walked back into it. Olivia's eyes were red and puffy, and she was cleaning out her desk. Alex and Casey were sitting in witness chairs, stunned. Fin and Munch were solemnly filing paperwork and Melinda was sleeping in Elliot's chair, her head resting on his desk.

"Liv, baby, what are you doing?" Elliot asked, walking over to her.

Olivia sniffled. "Getting all of my personal things out of the desk. I'm not leaving it here for four months so some ass from the two-nine can play with it," she said, tossing her things into a box. "And I'm trying to stay busy."

Elliot pulled the box away from her and set it down on the desk, then wrapped his arms around her. "Baby, go home, okay? There's nothing you can do here, tonight. Hank's here to get Mel, I'm gonna have him drop you off."

Olivia clutched onto his jacket and another tear rolled down her cheek. "El, I don't want to..."

"Stay with the kids, baby," Elliot interrupted. "You won't be alone."

* * *

It was almost three in the morning when he walked into the foyer. Olivia was curled up on the couch, asleep. The television was on, but muted, blinking silently in the dark room. Elliot set the house alarm and slowly walked over to the couch. He picked up the remote, turned off the TV and looked down at Olivia. He slipped one arm under her neck and the other under her legs and just as he was about to lift she opened one eye.

"You wanna throw your back out?" she asked with a smirk.

"Hey," Elliot said, with an offended-sounding chuckle. "I'm not that old and you're not that heavy." He proved it by scooping her into his arms. "See?"

"El, put me down, you just got shot!" she scolded.

Elliot laughed and kissed her. "Wrap your arms around my neck and shut up," he told her. He carried her up the spiral stairs and laid her gently in their bed, pulling the covers over her. "I love you," he said with a kiss.

"I love you, too," she replied, watching intently as he changed out of his suit. "What, uh, what happened to George?"

Elliot sighed, pulling on his flannel pants. "He was giving an inmate a psych eval, his lawyer and two guards were there, and right in the middle of it, the prisoner got up and wrapped his hand around George's neck. The guards tried to pull him off, but it only made him squeeze harder."

"Oh, God," Olivia said, closing her eyes. "He knew that he'd die like that. He told me, once, that he knew he'd die during an evaluation. He accepted it, El."

"Just like we do," Elliot said, climbing into the bed. "Cops, I mean. Not us, personally. It's a risk that comes with the job. You have to accept it, or you can't do your job."

Olivia looked at Elliot for a moment. "Okay, mister, bullet proof vest and a goddamn helmet. Every time you leave the fucking squadroom!" She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed.

"Liv, baby, hey," he said, returning her embrace. "Sweetheart, I'm gonna be fine, Liv. You know how we work, the precautions we take. You also know that I'm fast, and a quick shot, and that I will do anything, and I mean anything, before I let some dirtbag take me away from my wife and kids."

Olivia nodded into his chest. "I know, El."

"I met the new psychiatrist tonight," Elliot said, softly. "They wasted no time, but they didn't have a choice. His name's Skoda. Emil Skoda. I can't even...I couldn't even look at him. That's why I had to have Hank take you home. He was on his way up and I knew you would..."

"El," Olivia interrupted. "You didn't have to do that, honey."

Elliot brushed her hair back. "Liv, baby, you're over-emotional as it is because of the baby, I didn't want to take the chance of stressing you out and making you more upset. Hell, Munch had a hard time dealing with him, and he's hardly ever emotional."

Olivia leaned up a bit and kissed Elliot, then wrapped herself more firmly around him. "Thank you."

"Just doing my job, baby," he replied. "Goodnight, Liv." He reached over and pulled the chain on the lamp.

"Goodnight, El," Olivia said, placing small kisses on his chest. She fell asleep as soon as his breathing evened out, listening to the comforting sound of his heartbeat.

* * *

"Good Morning," Olivia said, yawning, as she walked into the bullpen. Elliot came in right behind her, smirking.

"I hope you two are married, because you've just had a very satisfying sexual experience, with each other, your left hands are both ringed, and she's very pregnant," a deep, male voice said from the extra desk in the squadroom.

Olivia narrowed her eyes. "I hope you're married, because when I kill you I really want to see the expression on your wife's face when someone tells her you were pummeled to death by an angry, pregnant detective."

"She'll do it, man," Fin said, chuckling.

Elliot rubbed her arms, lightly, trying to calm her down. "Honey, I'd like you to meet Doctor Emil Skoda. He likes to give instant reads. Out loud. All the fucking time."

"Don't read me, out loud, ever again," Olivia spat, "Or I will make sure that the only thing you ever read again is Braille."

Skoda laughed. "Forgive me, Mrs. Stabler. It's a habit that's very hard to break. I can tell, though, that you won't follow through on that threat. Your hormones are affecting your judgment and your emotions are running high."

Olivia slapped her hand down on her desk and whipped it back up, clutching a letter opener tightly. "You sure about that?"

"No," Skoda said, suddenly a bit scared. "I could have been wrong."

"Yeah, you were," Olivia spat. She put the letter opener back down on her desk, then turned to Elliot. "He was right, though. That was one very satisfying sexual experience," she whispered, kissing him with a chuckle.

Elliot laughed, kissing her back. "God, I love you," he told her with a nuzzle.

Cragen opened his door and looked around. "Guys, I know we're all still feeling a bit shocked and upset, but we have jobs to do. Fin, Stabler, you two need to go," he said, handing them a pink paper. "Warner's probably already there. DB found in Central Park. Suspected rape-homicide." He turned to Munch and handed him another slip. "You got a vic at Saint Vincent's."

Elliot and Fin looked at each other and nodded. Elliot kissed Olivia, promised he'd be careful, and walked out of the doors with Fin close behind him. Munch grabbed his jacket, leaving Olivia alone with the new doctor.

"So," Skoda said. "You're Olivia Benson?"

"I used to be. I'm Olivia Stabler, now," she told him, pouring herself some juice and grabbing an orange from her Tucker-supplied bowl. "They tell you about me last night?"

Skoda shook his head. "No, Detective, a former patient used to talk about you quite often. He used to talk about your husband quite a lot, too."

"Used to? So, he stopped talking about us?" Olivia asked, peeling her orange and furrowing her brow.

"He stopped talking, period. He's dead," Skoda said.

Olivia's eyes widened. "Oh, my God, George? He was a patient?"

"No, Detective," Skoda replied with a sigh. "Brian Cassidy."

**A/N: So, Cassidy was nuts? That explains so much. What does this conversation lead to? Review! **


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N: An interesting conversation with Doctor Skoda. Followed by an interesting conversation with Elliot. =) It was unavoidable, really. **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story**

Skoda looked at the blank expression on Olivia's face. She'd stopped peeling her orange. He chuckled, knowing that she was asking a silent question. "He was ordered to see me, by his captain. Two years ago, he suffered an almost-complete mental and nervous breakdown."

"And it was because of me?" Olivia asked, finally finishing peeling her fruit.

Skoda sipped the coffee, Olivia was stunned that another human being could drink Munch's sludge without flinching, and shook his head. "No, no. You were part of it. You and your partner. But, really, it was what he'd seen as an SVU detective. He couldn't get over it. We had made some very real progress, ya know? I finally got him to stop seeing the faces of dead, naked teenagers in his pancakes, and then he hatches this plan to get back in here, somehow."

"That's crazy," Olivia said, without thinking. "I mean, well I didn't mean that Cassidy was crazy. I just meant..."

"I know," Skoda said with a chuckle. "That's what I told him. I didn't use the c-word, but I told him it was a very bad idea. He told me he wasn't coming back for the work. He was infatuated with you, Olivia. Can you tell me why? Because he never did."

Olivia slowly put an orange slice into her mouth, and narrowed her eyes at the doctor. "You're going to psychoanalyze _me_, now?"

"Perhaps," he said with a smirk and a gulp of his coffee. "I had a very interesting conversation with Elliot yesterday, so I think it's only fair," he joked with a shrug.

"Wow," Olivia said. "You just get right to the fuckin' point don't you? You're here to make sure we're all mentally okay after Cassidy's death, and now George's, aren't you?

Skoda sighed and leaned back. "Affirmative. Very good, detective. Now can we begin?"

"I'm fine, and I'm perfectly happy with the size of my head. It doesn't need to be shrunk," she spat, sticking another orange slice into her mouth.

"Olivia, are you afraid I'll uncover some deep, dark demons? I have your file from George's office. I promise, we won't talk about any cases, or your mother, and if we do touch on any topic you're not comfortable with just tell me and we'll change the topic. I'm just here to make sure you're handling these deaths well, I'm not here to give you a complete evaluation," Skoda said, leaning forward. "Nothing we discuss is going in your file, I promise."

Sighing, chewing on her orange, Olivia rolled her eyes. "Fine. Ask me something."

"I already did. Why was Brian Cassidy so obsessed with you?"

"I really have no idea. My first year here, we, uh, we spent the night together," Olivia said. "It was one night, that's all I wanted it to be. He wanted more. He was insistent about it. But, it was a one-night thing for me, and when I told him it couldn't happen again he started to get very confrontational with me. Fighting over evidence, and statements, and whether or not to trust the witnesses."

Skoda narrowed his eyes at Olivia. "So, why did you sleep with him, really, if you didn't want a relationship with him?"

Olivia scoffed. "I don't have to answer that."

"You don't," Skoda affirmed. He waited, knowing she would.

Olivia sighed. "We went out, a group of us, and we had a few drinks. At the end of the night, it was something we both wanted."

"Okay, now the real reason?" Skoda asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That is the real...fuck, you're good," Olivia said with a sigh.

Skoda had a hunch, and he ran with it. "I'm guessing, Detective Stabler wasn't with you at the bar."

"He was, but he left after a couple of beers. He had..." she paused and ran a hand through her hair. "He had a wife and kids to go home to, and he didn't want to give her a reason to yell at him." Olivia tossed her orange peels into the trash can, suddenly uncomfortable.

Skoda, noticing, changed the direction of his questioning. "What was your interaction with your then-partner, now-husband, like that night?"

Olivia chuckled, remembering. "Awkward. We were talking about everything but work, trying not to talk about the case. After the first beer, things got a bit, uh, flirty, I guess. Two drinks in, we started talking about sex, what turns us on, if we'd ever sleep with someone from work, and he leaned over, so close, and he almost kissed me. He stopped, kissed me on the cheek instead, and left. We never mentioned it again."

"You went home with Brian because you couldn't go home with Elliot," Skoda said.

Olivia stared at the doctor, expressionless, and just nodded. "I never thought that he'd...I mean, I never gave him any reason to think..."

"Olivia, please, don't blame yourself. Cassidy had an obsessive personality. He had a habit of forming instant infatuations with the women he slept with, and they never lasted. He latched on to you, for so long, because of the way he had to let you go. He never got real closure," Skoda explained. "He left the unit, not just you, and the next time he sees you, you're married to the man he was insanely jealous of and pregnant with his child. It set him off. He grew insane with envy and regret and rage, because he'd never get to prove that he was a better lover than you remember, or that he was good enough to be in your life, or in the SVU," Skoda said.

"Is that why he tried to kill my husband?" Olivia asked, folding her arms. "Because his ego was wounded?"

Skoda shrugged. "In a way, I'm trying to figure out what really happened, myself. He never showed signs of violence or malicious tendencies toward anyone."

Olivia looked at him with a tilted head. "Are you sure you should be telling me this? Doctor-patient..."

"My patient is dead. He won't care," Skoda interrupted. "Now, how are you handling the fact that your husband is the man that killed Cassidy?

"It was self-defense. If Elliot had to kill the Pope to save his own life, I'd watch the holy man go down without a second thought," Olivia said, pointedly. "I'm handling it fine. He did what he had to do to get out of that situation alive."

Skoda nodded. "He's very important to you. More than he probably should be. I saw your eyes flicker. They've changed color a few times as we've been talking, and I'm assuming this pretty golden-brown is either fear or anger. The thought of losing him, it terrifies you, doesn't it?"

"Of course it does!" Olivia said with a liaughing scoff. "He's my husband, my life!"

"It's deeper than that, Olivia. What would you have done if Cassidy has killed him, if it wasn't Elliot that walked away from that situation?"

Two people had begun to walk into the squadroom, when they stopped, shortly, to listen to what was going on. They leaned up against the door frame and focused on Olivia.

"I...don't know. I can't live without him," Olivia said softly. "I made the decision a long time ago, when he goes, I go."

Skoda raised his eyebrows. "But you have kids, you're going to have another one. You'd really leave them alone?"

"I'd be absolutely useless to them without Elliot," Olivia admitted. "I wouldn't even be able to get out of bed." She didn't realize the tears were running, silently, down her cheeks. Just thinking about it killed her. "They'd have plenty of people who'd still be able to take care of them. I wouldn't be able to, and I'd only make their lives difficult."

Skoda shook his head. "You don't know that, Olivia. You're a lot stronger than..."

Olivia shouted, then. "No! I'm not! People have this image of me in their heads, I'm this fucking invincible woman. Because of everything I've been through, and where I come from, and who I am as a result. But, goddamn it, I'm not strong enough to live without him. I never will be," she shouted, then, finally, wiped her cheek.

The two people waiting at the squadroom door were suddenly very mad at the good doctor, and one thought this was the perfect moment to interrupt. "You'll never have to be," a voice from the doorway called. His feet carried him closer to her, fast, and he cupped her face in his hands. He wiped her eyes and kissed her, holding her tightly as he glared at the doctor. "What the hell did you do to her?"

Fin was staring now, too. "Why is my Baby-Girl cryin' and who do I need to punch for it?"

Skoda shook his head and held up his hands. "We were just talking about what would hap...

Elliot cut him off, sharply. "We heard you, Doctor Skoda. What the hell is wrong with you? You don't talk about that shit with a woman who's seven months pregnant!"

Skoda shrugged and shook his head. "I know that she's in a hyper-emotional state, I thought that..."

"You thought you'd get more honest answers? Olivia's a very honest girl already. She was thinkin' with her heart, fueled by hormones, you can't take what she just told you seriously. She is not going to be suicidal," Fin said, scowling at the doctor.

Skoda nodded. "I know that, I am a psychiatrist, thanks. I'm aware. I never meant for the conversation to get..."

"This conversation's over," Elliot spat. He grabbed Olivia's hand and pulled her up to the cribs, closing the door behind them. He turned to Olivia, ran his hands over her face and brushed her hair back. "Are you okay? I heard most of it, baby, and he's..."

"El, I'm okay," Olivia interrupted as she sniffled, and nodded. "I'm fine. He just, uh, read me, out loud, again. And he figured out that I'm terrified of losing you. Nothing new, nothing surprising, but he just kept talking about it. He should have just taken my first answer for what it was and shut up about it," she said.

He kissed her with a chuckle. "He's a psychiatrist, Liv. Of course he was gonna try to analyze you! But, you know, when you're not pregnant anymore, you'll feel differently. You're gonna look at Joshie, hold him in your arms, and you're gonna realize that life isn't just about you and me anymore. You're gonna want to live, for him."

Olivia nodded and smiled at Elliot. "I already do, El, but I wanna live _for _him _with_ you. I know a lot of what I said down there was hormone driven. But, it's true, partly. I'm pretty sure I can't do this without you. I can't live without you."

"I can't live without you either. That's what keeps me fast and strong, Liv. I live for you and the kids. I refuse to leave you alone. You've got nothing to worry about, baby, because I will fight like hell, no matter what. In our vows, the priest didn't say 'till death do you part,' he said, 'for as long as you both shall live.' I plan on living, with you, for at least a hundred more years," Elliot said, with a smile, as he leaned in to kiss his wife. "No more tears, okay? Kiss me," he whispered as he pressed his lips to hers.

Olivia kissed him back, greedily. She pulled him closer and ran her fingers through his hair, turning th kiss into a feverish, frenzied one. She moaned and pulled away when she felt herself get too heated. "Okay, at work, we're at work," she mumbled. "What happened in Central Park?"

Elliot smirked and shook his head. "Oh, no. You can't kiss me like that and then talk about work," he told her, leaning into her again. "Come back here," he laughed. He pulled her closer, kissed her, deeply, and ran his hands over her body, resting one hand on her belly as the other snaked up the back of her top.

"El, baby, we're at work. What are you doing?" Olivia asked, between kisses.

"Giving that fucking doctor something else to analyze," he said, wagging his eyebrows. "If he thought we walked in from a satisfying sexual experience this morning, I can't wait to hear what he says when we go back downstairs."

Olivia laughed as Elliot tugged off her shirt. She looked up at him, while shoving him out of his jacket. "Oh, hey. He said he talked to you yesterday, what about?"

"Cassidy. Huang. And you," he kissed her passionately as he slid down her pants. "Stop talking, baby."

"Me? What did you say about me?" Olivia asked.

Elliot sighed. "He's playing some kind of game, Liv. He told me, word for word, what he told you. And I said the same damn things you did. I had the good sense to walk out of the squadroom after I said it, though," Elliot said with a chuckle. He watched as Olivia unbuttoned his shirt and kissed the top of her head. "I think he's fishing for problems, and we don't have any, so he's trying to cause them."

"Well," Olivia said as she worked Elliot's belt off, "I know what I'm doing with my last week at work." She flung the belt onto another bunk and Elliot pushed his way out of his pants.

He loomed over Olivia, looked down at her and kissed her, gently. "What, baby?"

"Finding out what the fuck that doctor really wants," she said, reaching up and looping an arm around his neck. "I love you," she whispered.

Elliot slid into her, slowly, and groaned, his head resting on hers. "I love you, too, baby," he said with a deep kiss. "Can you stop talking now?" he asked with a smile as he began to move.

* * *

"Why the hell did you go into such a sensitive topic?" Fin asked as he sat back down in his chair.

Skoda shrugged. "I just go where the conversation tells me to go."

Fin picked up a DD5 and pointed at the doctor. "Well, if I were you, I'd stop trying to get into her head. She's fragile right now, and with this bein' her last week, I want to make sure she stays happy. I wanna make sure she comes back happy in four months, too."

"You really care about her, don't you?" Skoda asked, with a smirk.

"Yeah, man. She's like my kid sister. She's my Baby-Girl," Fin said, smiling at the thought of Olivia.

Skoda leaned back, took a sip of his coffee and furrowed his brow. "Didn't someone try to blow her up, not too long ago? How did you handle that?"

"Oh," Fin said, suddenly irritated. "We are not goin' there, man."

Skoda smirked at this response, tilted his head, and asked, "The thought of losing her...it terrifies you, doesn't it?"

**A/N: What's up with this guy?? Next chap: the answer! And maternity leave drives Olivia crazy, but a mid-day visit cheers her up. ;) **


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: Olivia's last week at the Squad has gone by too quickly! Has she found out what she needed to know? **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"I'm gonna miss you, Ben...Stabler," Munch said. "Really. It won't be the same without you."

Olivia smiled softly at him and tilted her head. "Aw, Munch. It's only for a few months. And, when I come back, you guys will have a nephew and I won't be so hormonal."

Fin chuckled. "I like you hormonal. You never know what's gonna come out of your mouth," he said, shaking his head. "It's entertaining."

"Glad you feel that way, Fin," Elliot said. "I plan on knocking her up a couple more times, so Hormonal-Liv will be back before you know it."

Olivia laughed. "It better not be that soon, Mister," she said, smirking. "I have to get out of here, or Cragen will hurt me. Technically, my leave started an hour ago. But," she paused, and held out a folder to her husband. "I called a friend at the F.B.I and had a full background-check run on this Skoda guy. Even had his name run through the open-case database."

"Which friend?" Elliot asked, narrowing his eyes. "You called Porter?"

Olivia bit her lip and looked Heavenward. "My brother almost killed him and he still did me a favor, Elliot! It's not like we're gonna meet up for drinks or become pen-pals."

"I hate that guy," Elliot spat. He opened the folder and his eyes widened. "Oh, really, now?"

Olivia smirked and nodded. "Yeah. I already told Cragen, and he told everyone not to answer anymore of Skoda's questions. It's a good thing I'm pregnant or I would have made one awesome test-subject," she said, shuddering.

Alex raised an eyebrow. "Test-subject?" she asked, spooning cake into her mouth.

"He's working on a study, for One-P-P, on the stress-levels and emotional instability of the detectives in the Special Victim's Unit," Olivia said, "Because we've all been here longer than the average detective, Skoda thinks we're incpable of separating our feelings from the job. We're a family. Literally, in the case of me and Elliot. The higher-ups think that these connections have to be negatively affecting us."

Elliot handed Alex the file. "The Chief of D's is getting a kick-back from a pretty powerful drug company if he can get Skoda to prescribe antidepressants and sleeping aides to anyone on the roster in this unit. Even the level one's in the back who just do the filing."

Casey shook her head and she leaned her arm on Fin's shoulder. "What a crock of shit," she said. "You're the hardest working, and smoothest running, unit in the city. What was the catalyst? What brought this on?"

Elliot and Olivia looked at each other. They knew that it was because the Chief had found out Ed Tucker was Elliot's father, but they weren't about to say that. "Don't worry," Elliot said. "It's been taken care of."

Cragen came out of his office and looked around. "Guys, come on! Put the rest of the cake away, throw away the wrapping paper, and...Olivia, for the next four months, you no longer work here. Go home."

"I'm on my way, Cap," she said, chuckling. "I just wanted to give Elliot the information on Skoda before he showed up today." She gave Fin, Munch and the girls brief hugs, then threw her arms around Cragen. Silent tears fell down her cheeks and she whispered, "I'll miss you most of all, Scarecrow."

Cragen held her tightly, holding back his own tears and whispered back, "But there's no place like home, Dorothy. And you'll be back with my new grandson before you can say 'D-D-Five', right?"

"Yeah," Olivia said, chuckling. "Please," she said as she pulled away. "Don't let Elliot..."

"I won't," Cragen said. "He's on a desk for the next two weeks, then he's home with you, where he belongs." He patted her on the back and kissed her cheek before heading back into his office.

Olivia turned to Elliot and he stood, pulling her close. She cupped his face and said, "I'll see you at home."

"As soon as possible," he said, kissing her passionately. He rubbed her belly and said, "Be good for Mommy, Joshie." He got a swift kick in return and he and Olivia chuckled. Olivia grabbed her gifts and walked out of the bullpen, for the last time, for a long time.

* * *

The kids would still be in school for another two hours, and there was no telling how long Elliot would be at work. Olivia was home alone. "Stupid, cartoons, stupid, talk-show, stupid, soap-opera, stupid...oh, cable TV prison drama!" Olivia settled on the channel and put the remote control down. She'd only been home for three hours, and already she was bored out of her mind. She'd cleaned the entire Wolfangified kitchen, she made every bed in the house, she flipped over all of the couch cushions in the living room, the den, and the finished basement, and she organized all of the books in their bedroom library, alphabetically, by author. Now, it seemed, television was the only option.

"Okay," she said, to no one. "That would totally not happen in a real jail. First, none of the men in prison are that...adventurous...and two, the guards, doctors and nurses would totally notice that happening in the middle of the hospital wing. It does make for intriguing television, though." She was about to flip the channel again when the doorbell rang. "Who the hell?" She got up, walked softly over to the door and looked out of the peephole. She didn't see anyone. She turned to walk back to the couch and the doorbell rand again. She ran back to the door, or waddled, more like it, and looked through the peep hole. She still saw no one.

A smirk slowly spread across her face and she counted to three before opening the door and catching Elliot leaning in to ring the doorbell. "Did you forget your key?"

"Hi," he said, standing upright. "Honey."

"What are you doing here?" she asked, a hand on her hip, as she leaned against the door frame, still smirking.

Elliot smiled at her. "I did a test run, seeing how fast I could make it home from the station, just in case you went into labor."

"I'm not due for another month, and I doubt I'm going into labor within the next two weeks. When I have this baby, El, you'll be with me," Olivia said, chuckling. "What are you really doing here?"

"This," he said. He pushed her into the house, closed the door behind him and kissed her. Wrapping his arms around her, he walked her back to the couch and sat, pulling her down with him. He pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. "I missed you, Liv," he said, closing his eyes. "I looked up and your desk was empty. I kept expecting you to walk in and make some crack about baby hiccups, or Munch's coffee, and when you didn't, I had to come home." He cupped her face and pulled her toward him for another kiss. He nuzzled her nose and held her close, rocking her in his arms. "It doesn't feel right without you there."

"El," she said, softly. "I'm sure you can last two..."

"No," he interrupted. "I can't, Liv. I've been with you every day for the past three years. You've sat across from me, making stupid faces at me, keeping me sane and grounded, and being my rock. Three hours without you drove me crazy. I can't last two whole weeks." He pushed her down, flat on the couch, and ran his hands over her body, resting them on her belly. "I told Cragen I'd go by later to get my stuff. I'm staying home with you, starting now."

He was about to lean down to kiss her again, when there was a breaking news bulleting alert blaring through the television.

Their heads snapped toward the television, Olivia bolted up to a sitting position, and their eyes widened. "We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you this breaking story. Tiger Ten News has just learned that shots have been fired at Trinity Preparatory Academy in Manhattan. The three building school, housing students from kindergarten through high school..."

That's all they bothered listening to before they jetted out the door with fear and panic in their hearts. Elliot called Cragen on the way to the school, and he, in turn, called every available unit to meet them there. Elliot drove faster than ever and Olivia tried to control her breathing. Once they arrived, Elliot immediately got out of the SUV and, after helping Olivia out, ran to the nearest officer and flashed his badge. "My kids are in there," he shouted. "What do you know? What's going on?"

"So far, we've had five shots fired in the South wing," the officer said, "And eight in the East."

"Oh, my God," Elliot said, turning pale. "Maureen and the twins! Kathleen's in the North..." He looked around for the nearest police van. He spotted one, and then turned to Olivia. "Baby," he said. "I gotta go in there. The kids," he choked out, his voice cracking. He kissed her, deeply, and before Olivia could respond or argue, he ran toward the blue and white equipment carrier and flashed his badge, talking to the chief in charge.

Olivia watched, panicking, as the chief handed Elliot a bulletproof vest and pointed to a group of armed officers who were already heading into the building. Without hesitation, Elliot followed them.

"Olivia!" a voice called to her. "Is Elliot with you?"

She turned to see Cragen running toward her. She wrapped her arms around him and shook her head. "He went inside!"

"Fucking hell," Cragen muttered, holding onto Olivia. Suddenly, their heads snapped toward the main building as more shots rang out. It was a conversation of bullets, back and forth, many guns firing at once. Olivia yelped and curled her fingers into Cragen's jacket. Her entire life was in that school. Her husband, partner, and best friend, along with their four children. With every shot she heard, a part of her soul shattered. And as a deafening silence finally fell over the school and the street-full of on-lookers, the sound of Olivia's breaking heart was heard, loud and clear, by Cragen. He pulled her closer and let her cry, unabashedly, into his chest.

Minutes, which seemed like hours, passed by. Finally, the main doors opened and three vested officers walked out followed by a rush of running children, crying and screaming, into the courtyard. As each child found their panic-stricken parents, Olivia lost more and more hope. Her four kids were nowhere to be found, and there was no sign of Elliot.

"Oh, God," she cried, burying her face in Cragen's chest and squeezing him tighter.

She whispered something else, he swore it was "Dad," and his own tears began to fall. "Olivia," Cragen said, tapping her on the shoulder. "Honey, look!"

Olivia turned, her eyes wide, and saw Elliot striding toward them, a twin in each arm and Maureen and Kathleen running right beside him. He dropped the twins to the ground and they all ran toward Olivia, who ran toward them, crying. They met with a tight hug, and muffled sobs. Olivia cupped each child's face and scanned each young body for injury. "My babies," she cried, "Are you guys okay? Are you hurt? Are you hit?"

"No, Mommy," Lizzie said, sniffling. "Just scared."

Kathleen looked up at her father, then back at Olivia. "Daddy saved us."

"I know he did, sweetheart," Olivia said, throwing her arms around Elliot. "What happened?" she whispered to him.

Elliot looked down at the kids. "Hey, guys, go hug your Grandpa Don. He was worried about you, too." He made sure Cragen had his kids occupied, then dropped his voice. "Four dead. Two teachers, one student, and the shooter."

Olivia's eyes widened. "Oh, God, El. Did you..."

"No, baby," he said, shaking his head and sniffling. "I didn't even fire my gun. I went in, went looking for our kids and when I found them all, the gunfire started. We hit the deck until it stopped."

Olivia let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding, and pulled him closer, kissing him. "I was so scared," she said. "Do you know who the shooter was?"

"Yeah," Elliot said, nodding. "You're not gonna believe this."

"Who?" Olivia asked, suddenly scared all over again.

Elliot kissed her forehead and brushed her hair back. "Andrew Skoda."

"Skoda?" Olivia said, furrowing her brow and tilting her head. "You mean he's..."

Elliot nodded and cut her off, again. "Yeah. The psychiatrist's son."

**A/N: Hmmm. Say what? So much for Elliot taking time off! How's the crazy Doc gonna react to this? Who's ready to meet Joshie in a few chaps??**


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N: She's never seen what he's like at work when she's not there to keep him calm. Until now. It was unavoidable, I guess.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story**

It was getting harder and harder for Olivia to move without getting tired, and she felt useless half of the time. She wasn't working, and she wasn't doing much around the house. Most people would kill for this kind of life, but Olivia Stabler hated it with every ounce of her humanity. She decided that she'd take this boring Saturday morning and go visit her husband, since the kids were all at a friend's birthday party.

Now, however, as she waited in traffic in the back of a smelly taxi, she was regretting that decision. "You can let me out here," she said. "I'll walk." She handed the driver a twenty, told him to keep the change, and plodded the remaining block and a half to the station.

"Oh, hi, Detective Benson!" the receptionist shouted. "Or, uh, Mrs. Stabler, right? You ready to be a mommy?"

Olivia smiled at the woman and shrugged. "I don't know about that, Joan, but I'm ready to not feel like I'm carrying a large watermelon in my uterus anymore, that's for sure." She walked toward the elevator and as it opened, she got a surprise.

"Olivia!" Alex yelled, hugging her. "What are you doing here?"

Olivia raised an eyebrow. "Going to see Elliot," she said. "Are you arraigning someone?"

"Yeah," Alex said. "They got Doctor Skoda on conspiracy charges. You might not wanna go up there right now."

"Conspiracy? To do what?" Olivia asked, stepping into the elevator.

Alex rolled her eyes and stepped back into the lift with Olivia. "I shouldn't tell you. You're not on the job, Olivia. But, it pissed everyone off, and this guy is going down, hard. He got his own son killed..."

Olivia held up a hand and furrowed her brow. "Wait, he knew about the shooting at Trinity?"

"He planned it, Olivia," Alex said, sighing. The doors opened and the two girls walked off the elevator and down the hall, turning into the SVU squadroom.

Olivia's eyes widened as she found an empty bullpen, but heard shouts and slamming metal. "Is that...that's Elliot!" She ran into the pit and pushed Cragen and Fin aside. When the two-way-mirror came into view she was terrified. Her husband, her partner, her Elliot, had the man by the throat, against the wall, which wasn't unusual. However, the way he was clenching the man's throat was! Skoda was turning red and Elliot wasn't letting up. He was actually grinning and there was something dark and evil in his eyes. She heard the things that he was saying, through gritted teeth, and she almost cringed. A grown woman, a detective no less, was about to blush at mere words. "Aren't you gonna stop him?" she yelled at Cragen.

"What?" Cragen asked, looking at her. "Oh, Olivia, when did you...what are you doing here?"

Olivia was shocked. "What the hell does that matter? Go stop Elliot! He's going to kill Skoda!"

"We tried to stop him, Baby-Girl," Fin said, rubbing his jaw. "He punched me when I tried to pull him off of Skoda, he threw a chair at Munch, he didn't even acknowledge Cragen's presence."

Olivia's eyes grew wider and she shoved her way toward the door.

"Olivia! Don't," Cragen yelled, but it was too late.

Olivia threw the door open and walked into the interrogation room. "Elliot!"

Elliot turned, sharply, dropping Skoda to the floor. "Get outta here, Liv!"

"What the hell has gotten into you?" she asked, stepping toward him with her face screwed up in anger and fear. It only grew into confusion when he ran over and pulled her into his arms. "Okay, I'm the one that's supposed to have the mood swings."

"Liv," Elliot said. "You don't understand. He sent his son into the school to target our kids. Ours, and Fin's son. He was trying to make us all crazy," he told Olivia, holding her tighter. "He wanted to make sure we'd need to see him, and that we'd need his fucking medication."

Olivia narrowed her eyes at him as he pulled away. "El, are you serious?" When he nodded, she had to push down the anger and emotion and be his voice of reason, as usual. "El, I know what you're going through, baby, but stop, okay? Think like a detective, and do your job."

"I can't," he spat in a harsh whisper. "Not without you. I told you that. This is what happens to me when you're not around to keep me sane." He whipped his arm back and gestured to the man who was still crumpled on the floor, struggling to breathe.

Olivia shook her head and pulled him out of the interrogation room. "He's leaving," she said to Cragen as they breezed through the pit. "Don't call him for three months. Finish this without him," she demanded.

Cragen watched them leave and shook his head. "I actually wish she didn't stop him," he sighed before heading into the room to pick up the beaten, bruised and barely breathing man. "Would have saved us all a whole lot of trouble."

* * *

Once home, Olivia stared at Elliot across their dining room table, decaf tea in hand, and waited for him to talk. She was trying to find the warmth and love that was always in his eyes, but it hadn't returned yet.

"I..." and that was all he could manage. He took a sip of the beer he'd been given and shrugged. "Damn it, Liv. I haven't been that bad since before you."

"Before me? You weren't that bad when you were with Kathy," she said, scoffing and shaking her head.

No," he said, sipping his beer again. "Liv, before you got to SVU. With my old partner, I was uncontrollable. When you arrived, I mellowed out, and when we got together, romantically, it was a whole new level of calm. Without you there these past two days, baby, I was acting like I was when I just got my shield. It didn't help that the man was..."

"Okay," Olivia interrupted. "I get it." She got up and walked over to his side of the table. She ran her hands over his shoulders and his hands shot up to clutch hers. "El, why did you even agree to help them with this?"

"I was in the school building, Liv," Elliot said. "They needed me. I didn't think that Skoda had planned it all, I didn't know I would get this involved." He craned his head over his shoulder and looked up at Olivia. "Or this emotional."

She bent her head and kissed him, squeezing the tension out of his shoulders. "You need to relax, El. You've been carrying around more stress than necessary, not just because of work. You're worried about me, and the baby, and the kids and you've gotta take it easy because I need you to be the stable one when I start to crack."

"You don't crack," Elliot said, rising to his feet.

Olivia scoffed. "Oh, really? Let's see, I've beaten the crap out of quite a few people in the last three years, myself, El. And in the last year, I killed a guy, met my psycho brother, I've kicked a desk repeatedly until it fell apart, I cried like a little girl into my captain's shirt while I called him 'Daddy,' and last night I had a dream where Josh was eaten by a giant squid."

Elliot laughed and pulled her close. "Okay, so we're both a bit stressed-out. We knew this would happen, though. Thanks for stopping me before I actually killed Skoda. What were you doing at the station, anyway?"

"I wanted to see you, I wanted to see Don, and I wanted paperwork. I was bored out of my mind!" Olivia rolled her eyes as she ruffled Elliot's hair. "It's frustrating being here alone, all day."

"Liv," he said, brushing her hair back, "I'm sorry I left you alone. I thought they really needed me. But, I'm here now, so tell me what you wanna do, and we'll do it."

"I wanna take a nap," Olivia said, pulling Elliot up the stairs.

Elliot raised an eyebrow and followed her. "A nap?"

Olivia nodded. "I want to put on some comfortable clothes, curl up in our big, beautiful bed, and cuddle. I would suggest having wild and passionate sex, but..."

"I like that idea," Elliot butted in. "Can we do that?" he asked with a chuckle and a wag of his eyebrows.

"El, look at me! I'm huge. I look down and all I see is belly, I feel like the abominable, pregnant snowwoman. No way am I getting naked right now," she said, walking over to the dresser.

"Liv," Elliot said, taken aback. "Are you crazy? You're gorgeous." He walked over to her and pulled her toward him by the hand. He ran a hand through her hair and down her back, over her hips and up and around her baby-bump. "You're glowing, and you may be about eight months pregnant, but you are an absolute goddess. Your body is just as incredible as it always was, and can we please talk about these?" He ran his thumbs lightly over her nipples and groaned as her head fell back and she moaned. "Your new curves are such a turn on. I told you when I found out you were pregnant that I was gonna have a hard time keeping my hands off of you, Liv, and I meant it. Seeing you like this, baby, does astonishing things to me." He kissed her, deeply, as he pulled the tie on the empire-waist shirt Kathleen had chosen for her a few Sundays ago. He pulled away from the kiss just long enough to pull the shirt over her head.

Olivia ran her hands through his hair and let him slide her elastic maternity jeans off of her hips. She nibbled lightly on his lip as he turned them around and gently flattened her out on the bed. He kneeled for a moment and pulled off his shirt and wormed his way out of his pants. He stuck a finger through each side of Olivia's panties and slid them down her body, and kissed his way back up.

"You're so beautiful, Liv," he said. He bent his head to kiss her and lifted her gently, placing all of the pillows under her head. He ran his hands over her, softly, as he pushed into her and he heard her cry out his name on a low moan. "Never, ever, think you're not."

"I love you, El," she said to him, holding him tightly.

Elliot smiled and kissed her as he started to move. "I love you, too, Liv."

He held her close and caressed her, kissing her tenderly with every stroke, and as they built up their speed and strength and the tension in their bodies rose, Olivia had never felt more loved, more wanted, or more beautiful. She clamped around him, tightly, and he shot off inside of her as he kissed her feverishly, grunting, panting and crying her name. He stroked her hair back and kissed her lazily as their ragged breathing returned to normal and their pulse-rates dropped back down.

"Oh, damn, baby," Elliot said with a laugh. "My phone was ringing the whole time," he said, reaching for it. He grabbed it and flipped it open, answering it with his usual barked out, "Stabler." He waited for a few moments and then said, "No, Cap. I don't need to talk to her. Thanks, though. Yeah. Me, too. She's fine. Beautiful, perfect and absolutely fine. I will, thanks." Olivia raised an eyebrow when he hung up and Elliot sighed, "Doctor Rebecca Hendrix has been reassigned as our head shrink, so if..."

"Woah, hold it," Olivia said. "Hendrix. That's the psychologist who has a raging crush on you?"

Elliot nodded. "Next time I see her, I'll be the proud daddy of a three month old boy, and still madly in love with my sexy, gorgeous, perfect wife," he said, punctuating each word with a kiss. "Don't get jealous, baby."

"I'm not," Olivia said, smirking. "I'm just thinking how much I'm going to love rubbing her nose in the fact that I got you. She once told me that she thought you were not at all emotionally attached to me, and that you and I had no sexual chemistry."

"I think she needs to seek mental help, herself," Elliot said, scoffing. "Everyone noticed we were in love, even before we did."

Olivia laughed and kissed him as she slid out from underneath him and snuggled close. "I'm pretty sure she was just trying to get me to back off, El," she said, kissing Elliot's chest.

"Thank God it didn't work," Elliot said, kissing the top of her head. "In an hour and a half, I'm waking you up." He set the alarm on his cell phone and plopped it on the end table.

"For what?" Olivia asked.

"Sex, round two" Elliot said, kissing her. "And then we have to go pick up the kids, I'm taking my family out to dinner, and then I have a surprise for you."

Olivia smiled as she closed her eyes. "You know I hate surprises."

"Oh," Elliot said, smirking, letting his eyes fall closed as well. "You're gonna love this one, Liv. Trust me." He kissed her on the forehead again.

**A/N: What's the big surprise? When they go back to visit the squad, what is Hendricks gonna say?** **Josh will be here in 2 Chaps!!!**


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N: Surprises. A few of them. =)**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and original characters, belong to TStabler©**

The alarm went off exactly an hour and a half after Elliot had set it, and Olivia snoozed right through it. There was no way she could sleep through the miraculous things he was doing with his mouth, though. She groaned. She rolled her head. Her eyes fluttered open as her hands found their way to his head, which was firmly attached to a nipple. "Christ, El," she mumbled.

"I told you," he said, with her nipple in his teeth, "I was gonna wake you up."

Olivia chuckled and moaned as Elliot's hands found their way to her lower body and explored every curve and every inch, until he had her right where he wanted her, begging and wriggling. "This is so much fun to watch," he said. "Olivia Benson, bad-ass detective, whining and begging and completely helpless." He looked so smug and proud and kept moving his fingers, causing her to go crazy.

"And eight months pregnant, give or take a week, El," Olivia groaned. "And it's Stabler." Her eyes rolled back and her hips, baby and all, bucked up into his hand. "God, El."

Elliot chuckled, moved his hand, and slid himself inside of her in its place. "Jesus, Liv, this never feels any different," he whispered as he kissed her. He moved, slowly, loving every glorious moment of their lovemaking. "And it always feels so damn good," he mumbled, moving even slower.

* * *

"Hey, Rick," Elliot said, walking into the arcade where the birthday party was held. "The kids ready?"

The man chuckled as he shook Elliot's hand. "Yeah, hold on," he said, turning. "Hey! Stabler kids, your parents are here!"

Maureen, Kathleen, Lizzie and Dickie ran over with their "thank you" gifts and and hugged their folks, then said goodbye to their friends. Olivia and Elliot said goodbye to the parents and led their kids into the SUV. The family drove off heading to dinner.

"Where are we going, Dad?" Kathleen asked.

Elliot smirked. "It's a surprise," he said.

"Well, what's the occasion? You and Mom are all dressed up, it must be someplace nice for something nice," Maureen said, with a laugh.

"It's a surprise," Elliot repeated.

"I don't even know," Olivia said, rubbing her belly. "He just told me to wear something pretty."

"You should know, Liv," Elliot said, grinning. "But I'll let it slide." He looked at her, and looked at her face, which was contorted in discomfort. "Baby, are you okay?"

Olivia nodded. "Yeah, Josh just thinks my internal organs are hackey sacks. He's very active today for some reason."

Elliot laughed. "Three more weeks, honey. Or is it four?"

"I think it's two," Maureen said, scrunching up her face.

Kathleen shook her head and hummed. "No, I'm pretty sure it's three."

Dickie shouted, from the backseat, "I think you were supposed to have the baby last week, Ma. Get a move on!"

"Actually, Joshua is due in precisely eighteen days," Lizzie offered. "I have it marked on my calendar, and an alarm is set on my phone." She held up her cell phone and smiled.

Elliot and Olivia chuckled. "Wow," Olivia said. "Okay then. Thank you, Doctor Stabler."

"Doctor Stabler," Lizzie said. "I like the sound of that."

More laughs erupted from the SUV as they pulled into the restaurant's parking lot and Olivia gasped. "El," she said. "Are you for real?"

Elliot laughed. "Yes, I am," he said, sounding cocky. He got out of the car and ran around to help his wife out of the vehicle. Once she was in his arms he kissed her, sweetly, and said, "I've had these reservations for months. You really don't know what today is, do you?"

Olivia thought for a moment, and only one thing sprang to mind, but why would Elliot make a big deal out of that? "No," she said. "Nothing that merits coming here."

"Don't be so sure," Elliot said, leading the family into the ritzy establishment. Elliot walked up to the podium and gave his name to the hostess, then they were led to a large round table.

As they sat, and opened their menus, Olivia's eyes bugged out. "Um, maybe if we all get water, and four of us share something, we can afford this," she said.

"Get whatever you want," Elliot said, seriously. "All of you. I got it covered." He snapped a finger at a waiter and pointed to their glasses, and the man immediately filled them with water. He felt like he had the right to be a bit cocky in a place like this. He could act like he had money and spoil his family for one night. This was special to him.

Olivia looked at him and tilted her head, as a hand shot to her belly. "El, you wanna tell me why we're here? Because other than this being the day I started at..."

"Yep," Elliot said, interrupting. "Happy fourth anniversary, baby." He raised his water glass and winked at her. "Four years ago, today, you became my partner. I started falling in love with you four years ago, and you changed my life that day, Liv. You changed the lives of my kids, then, too, because I brought you home for dinner and they started falling in love with you, too. That's the day our lives really began, Liv. That's why we're here."

With tears in her eyes, she raised her glass to meet his and as the crystal clinked, Maureen looked at her siblings. "We have the mushiest parents in the world," she said.

"Hey," Kathleen said. "I'll take mushy over violent. He could still be with Kathy."

All four kids shuddered and shook, and then Dickie said, "Thank you. I'm gonna have nightmares tonight. Kathy, as a zombie, coming after me and trying to eat my brain."

"We can hear you, ya know," Elliot said, laughing.

"Yeah," Dickie said, "Well nothing we've said was wrong. You two are so mushy, and we all hated Kathy." He sipped his water as his parents chuckled and shook their heads.

Olivia looked at Elliot. "They definitely inherited your bluntness."

"They get that from you, wiseass," Elliot said in a whisper, winking.

"How the hell could they have gotten anything from me?" Olivia asked, whispering back and smirking as she tilted her head and rubbed her belly.

Elliot sipped his water and closed his menu, having decided what he was going to order. "Liv, my kids have been watching you, learning from you, and repeating your actions since the day you walked into their lives. God, Liv, you have no idea that in the last four years you've taught them so much and..." he paused, getting choked up, and sipped his water. He shook his head, deciding that he couldn't finish what he was saying.

Olivia reached across the table, took his hand as the other still rubbed her belly, and said, "I love you." She gave him a soft expression and a loving smile.

"I love you, too, baby," Elliot replied, giving her hand a squeeze.

"See," Maureen said. "What did we tell you? Mushy!"

They laughed as the waiter came over and took their orders. While they waited, they talked about how the kids were doing in school, what they did at the party they'd just come from, and Elliot excused himself to make an important phone call. When he came back, the food had arrived and they had a very pleasant meal, until Olivia stopped eating.

"Wow," she said, holding her belly. "I don't think Josh likes fettuccine alfredo." She grabbed her water glass and gulped, then pushed her dish away.

Elliot leaned forward. "Liv, are you all right?" he asked, nerves evident in his voice.

"Yeah, Mom. Is everything cool?" Kathleen asked.

Olivia nodded and took a deep breath. "Okay, Joshie, calm down. Mommy's not gonna eat it anymore," she said, rubbing her belly in light circles. Once the kicking stopped, everyone visibly relaxed and went on eating.

Elliot paid the bill, and they all took home leftovers, including Olivia's barely eaten pasta, and got back into the car. "Onto the next surprise," Elliot said. "Everyone buckle up."

They all clicked their seatbelts and they were on their way home. Elliot pulled into their driveway and turned around. "Okay, kids, I need you guys to go in first, make sure there isn't anything on the steps and put all of the food in the fridge. Then tell Uncle Munch, Uncle Fin, Grandpa Don and Grandpa Ed to stay in the living room."

"You got it," Dickie said, hopping out of the car, followed by his sisters.

Olivia looked at Elliot with a raised eyebrow, and a half-smirk. "Elliot, what did you do?"

"Nothing, Olivia," he said, using her full name right back. "I didn't do anything." It was the truth. The other guys did it all, Elliot just planned it.

He ran around to Olivia's side and helped her out of the car, and kept her in his arms as they walked up the stairs. Cragen held the door open for them, and Olivia saw Fin, Munch and Tucker in the living room. They were all grinning like foxes.

"Okay," Olivia said, hand over her belly, still rubbing. "I'm very happy to see all of you, really, but what am I missing here?"

They just chuckled. "Your husband will explain," Cragen said.

"My son's very sneaky," Tucker said. "You should expect this sort of thing a lot."

"I've put up with him for four years," Olivia said. "I know he's a sneaky son of a gun. And he knows that I can't stand surprises so this better be amazing."

Elliot chuckled as he held her hand and led her up the spiraling staircase. "It is, baby, I told you that this morning. Come on," he prodded as he tugged. He led her to one of the many rooms in their house that they barely used. "Close your eyes," he commanded.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "I am not closing..."

"Liv, humor me," he said, rolling his own sapphire-blue orbs.

Olivia smirked, shook her head and laughed. She closed her eyes and muttered, "Happy?"

"Yes. Very," he stated. He slowly opened the door, and he turned on the light, and he kissed her as he said, "Open 'em."

Olivia gasped. The room had been painted a baby blue and the border around the top of the walls was a pattern of police cars, fire engines and tow trucks. She looked around the room and saw the dark mahogany changing table, next to a matching crib, a rocking chair that matched in the corner and a dark mahogany dresser, off to the side. On top of the dresser was a lamp; its base was two ceramic, black and white police cruisers, with real flashing lights. Next to it stood a framed photo of Olivia and Elliot on their wedding day. The frame was ceramic, like the lamp, and its border was painted to look like crime-scene tape. Resting over the top of the rocking chair was a blue baby-blanket with "Joshua Elliot" sewn in thick, white thread. On the seat, a plush police car pillow and a plush fire truck pillow sat side by side. Inside the crib was a very large, overstuffed, blue teddy bear with a badge on its chest and a blue, police uniform hat on its head.

"The changing table and dresser are fully stocked," Elliot said. "We've all been shopping, for a while now. Don's been keeping everything at his place. You said you didn't want a big shower, so everything is in here, and I'm giving it to you all at once. You have to see all the clothes Casey and Alex bought for their little godson. Fin bought the dresser and Munch bought the changibng table. Don bought the crib and Ed got all of the little extras, and the teddy bear is from me," he said, a tear rolling down his cheek. He looked at Olivia, who was weeping, and she had a hand over her mouth. "Liv? baby, say something."

"It's all so beautiful," she said, through her tears as she fell into Elliot's arms. "And I am really glad it's all right here, right now."

Elliot looked at her and brushed a tear away, kissing her. "Honey, me, too."

"Oh, boy, El," Olivia said, her face suddenly scrunching up, her grip on him tightening. "I'm really happy it's all here, now, because I think I'm having the baby."

Elliot's eyes widened and he looked around the nursery, panicking, as if the teddy bear would help him figure out what to do. "Are you sure?"

"I'm pretty sure, El," Olivia said, nodding.

"Liv, maybe it's just the fettuccine, baby. Are you really sure?" he asked, nervous, looking her in the eyes.

Olivia looked down at the floor and kicked Elliot's foot, bringing his attention to the nice, wet spot on the new carpet. "My water just broke, baby. That's a pretty good sign."

**A/N: We meet Joshie in the next chapter! Who's excited? **


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: We all knew that this moment was truly unavoidable.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

"What happened?" Alex yelled, running into the waiting room of the maternity ward with Casey right beside her.

Cragen sighed, folding his hands over each other as he paced back and forth. "Well, Elliot showed Olivia the nursery, and Josh must have gotten really excited about it. He wanted to use his new crib a little early," he said with a small laugh.

"She was in labor all day, and didn't know it," Tucker added.

"It wasn't the pasta!" Dickie yelled, looking up at his grandfathers. "Wow."

There were nervous chuckles and then Munch looked at Alex. "We were all there, thank God, so when Elliot yelled down to us that Olivia was having the baby, we got her out of the house, into the car and here in no time. But, that was hours ago, and we've heard nothing, from anyone." He ran a hand through his thinning hair and sighed. "This is fucking nerve-wracking."

Alex smacked him in the head. "There are children present! Watch your language!" she scolded.

"Please, Al! These kids belong to Stabler," Munch reminded her. "You're worried about what just came out of my mouth?"

Casey chuckled. "Hey, Benson's their mother, too, ya know. She doesn't exactly have the world's cleanest vocabulary," she quipped, wrapping her arms around Fin.

"I've noticed," Munch said, "That we all still call her Benson."

Cragen laughed. "Because that's who she is, Munch. Bad-Ass Benson, and she's in that room, right now, having a baby."

Fin smiled, brightly. "Baby-girl's havin' a baby boy. Part her and part Elliot."

"God help us all," Munch joked.

* * *

"I can't do this anymore," Olivia said, her head dropping back to the pillow behind her.

Elliot wiped her sweaty forehead with a cool cloth, and kissed her. He was amazed as his wife. She was a warrior. She hadn't been difficult, she had refused drugs and she hadn't yelled at him, not once. She hadn't told him to go away, or threatened him. She hadn't told him that he would never touch her again. It was only now, six hours into this, that she started to doubt herself. "Yes, you can, baby," he said. "You have to. One more big push, and Joshie's out here with us," he said. "He's stubborn, like you and me. So you need to put on your mommy pants and tell him that you're the boss and he's gotta do what he's told."

"I'm not wearing pants, El," she said, her eyes dropping closed as she struggled to breathe. "I'm having a baby. Pants would make that difficult."

Elliot laughed. "Come on, baby. One more big push. I got you. I'm with you. I'm right here."

Olivia squeezed his hand, the one that she'd been holding for the last six hours and twelve minutes. Elliot hadn't left her side, not once, for anything. She took a deep breath and pushed and squeezed his hand harder. Elliot was the first to see him, and the first to cry.

As Josh's little, baby wailing filled the room, Olivia's tears fell. Elliot peppered her face with sweet kisses and he murmured, "You did it, baby. You did it, you beautiful woman. I love you, Liv."

All she could do was nod. The doctor handed Elliot the medical scissors and he cut the cord, then the nurses cleaned Josh up, wrapped him in a blanket, and placed him gently in Olivia's waiting arms. "Welcome to the world, little man," Elliot said, lifting Josh's tiny hand with only one finger.

"Hello, Joshua Elliot Stabler," Elliot cooed. "I'm your mommy. And this big, crying, dancing, goofball is your daddy."

Elliot chuckled and sniffled. "We love you, bud," he said. Then, he and Olivia looked at each other, and at once they both searched his little, tiny body, frantically. "Okay," Elliot said, relieved. "Ten tiny fingers."

"And ten tiny toes," Olivia added. "And the most gorgeous blue eyes I've ever seen, next to yours, El. He's perfect."

"Of course he is, Liv," Elliot said, kissing her. "He's ours."

Olivia looked up at him, tears still falling, and she said, "I love you, too, by the way."

Elliot laughed. "I know you do. You're holding the proof in your arms." He kissed her again, brushed the sticky, wet hair off of her face and asked, "Do you want to see everyone?"

"In a minute," she said, looking back down at Josh. "Right now, I want to spend a little time alone with my amazing husband and our incredible son."

"He's got your nose," Elliot said.

Olivia chuckled. "He has your eyes, El. You don't know how much that mattered to me," she said with a sigh.

Elliot looked at her, the question mark evident on his face. "Why, baby?"

"God, El, I fell in love with you the minute I looked into your eyes. I can see everything you feel, everything you're thinking in them, and my whole life is in your eyes, and now, it's in our sons, too," she said, as yet another tear dropped.

"I was kind of hoping he'd have your eyes," Elliot said, running a finger lightly over his son's cheek. "For the same reasons."

"There we go, being mushy again," Olivia said, resting her head on Elliot's chest as she leaned back against him.

Elliot laughed. "We're not mushy, baby. We're in love," he said, kissing her head. "I'm gonna go tell everyone that he's here, and he's perfect. Are you ready?"

"I am, but I think Joshie's gonna sleep through it," Olivia said with a laugh as her son's little eyes blinked and fluttered closed.

* * *

"Elliot!" Tucker yelled, seeing him come out of the room in his blue scrubs. "What happened?"

"Is she okay?" Cragen asked. "How's the baby?"

"Where's Mom?" Kathleen yelled.

Maureen and Dickie both cried out, "What about Josh? How's Mom?"

Elliot held up a hand as the voices started to overlap and grow in volume. "Guys! Guys! Hold it!" he yelled with a laugh. "Liv is perfect, she's absolutely perfect. And Josh is perfect, too. Seven and a half pounds, almost nineteen inches long, and perfectly healthy even though he's two weeks early." Everyone cheered, and Elliot held up his hand again. "I know, I know, I wanna jump and yell and scream, too," he laughed. "But, Josh is sleeping, and I'm pretty sure Liv is halfway to la-la-land, too. I can take you guys in to see them, but you gotta be quiet!"

"Sorry," Lizzie whispered.

Elliot picked her up and kissed her cheek. "It's okay," he whispered back with a wink. "Come on," he said, chuckling, holding the door open. He led them into Olivia's room and her eyes, though droopy, were open.

"Hey," she said, smiling through her exhaustion.

Elliot put Lizzie down and ran back to her side, wrapping an arm around her and placing the other one lovingly on his son's little body. "Joshua Elliot Stabler, this is your family," he whispered.

"Oh, my God," Casey cried, softly. A tear ran down her cheek as she clutched Fin's hand. "He's beautiful."

Ed Tucker wiped away a tear and looked at Elliot. "Thanks for letting me be here for this one," he said, placing a hand over his heart. Elliot closed his eyes and nodded, smiling warmly.

"Man, Stabler," Fin said, looking at the sleeping newborn. "Ain't nothin' you two don't do perfectly, is there?"

"Nope," Elliot said, kissing Olivia on the head. "Guys," he said to the four excited faces in front of Cragen. "Come meet your little brother."

Lizzie and Dickie ran over first. "Oh, wow! He's so little," Lizzie said.

"You were that small once, too," Elliot said, "And there were two of you at once. You guys were such a handful!"

Maureen walked over and kissed Olivia on the cheek. "How are you feeling, Mom?" she asked.

"I am just fine, sweetie," she replied. "I've never been better, actually."

"He's so cute," Kathleen squealed, peering over at him.

Alex and Munch, both teary eyed, nodded. "You are one lucky little boy, Josh," Alex whispered, stroking the side of his sleeping face. "You have two amazing parents, who will never, ever, let anything hurt you."

Munch looked down at him and added, "And four Godparents, two Grandfathers, three older sisters and an older brother who will offer the same protection."

Cragen looked up at the scene before him, wiping his own tears, and sighed. "I knew it," he said. "The minute I said, 'Elliot Stabler, this is Olivia Benson, your new partner,' I knew that you two would end up here."

"In a hospital room?" Olivia asked, raising an eyebrow, smirking.

Cragen chuckled. "Yes, actually. Married, with a family. I knew this was all completely unavoidable, so I didn't stop it, and I didn't punish you for it. Hell, not like IAB really gives a...crap," he said, censoring himself for the kids, throwing a hand toward Tucker, who laughed as he looked over at his grandson.

"No, Don," Tucker said. "All IAB cares about is the happiness and safety of the detectives," he paused, looked down at his grandson again, and added, "As long as they do their jobs, like we all know they will."

Everyone in the room laughed, and Olivia, carefully, lifted the sleeping baby up and gave him to Elliot. "Here, Daddy," she said. "Take your son to really meet his family."

"You got it, Mommy," Elliot said, kissing Olivia on the head. He was half way around the room when the door opened, and someone else came in, with blue balloons and a blue teddy bear.

"Olivia?" the voice called out.

The whole room turned to face the woman. Olivia's eyes widened. "Hi, Rebecca," Olivia said, surprised. "What are you, uh, doing here?"

Rebecca Hendrix barreled into the room, handing the balloons to Fin. "I stopped by the precinct to meet everyone, and they told me you were having a baby!"

Olivia smirked. She knew exactly why Rebecca Hendrix was here. "Oh, well you didn't have to…"

"I didn't even know you were married! You haven't called me in months!" Hendrix cried, walking over to the bed.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Well, when you quit being a cop, unless we had a case where we needed you, I didn't see a reason to…"

"That doesn't matter, Olivia. Where is this baby? Where is the lucky guy you married? Is Elliot here?" Rebecca suddenly brightened her eyes and looked around, eagerly.

"I'm right here," Elliot said, smirking, holding his son. "I'm the extremely lucky guy she married. And this is our beautiful son," he said, cradling the baby. "Joshua Elliot Stabler."

Hendrix's face fell, she paled and her eyes closed. She cleared her throat as she opened her eyes and said, "Well, I'm, uh, very happy for the both of you. And, uh, congratulations. He's beautiful." She turned to Olivia, who was smiling, and said, "I hope you're happy."

"We are very happy, thanks, Doc," Elliot said before Olivia could respond, bringing Josh back to Olivia, setting him down, and wrapping his arms around his wife. He smiled down at her, and chuckled, shaking his head knowingly. He kissed her, deeply, despite the room full of people, and they both looked down at Josh.

"Hey, Joshie," Olivia said, watching in amazement as his little arms moved and his little eyes opened.

Elliot couldn't help the tears that fell, again, as he smiled down at his son. "Happy Birthday, buddy," he said. "He was born on the day we met, Liv. He just made it. Eleven fifty-eight. Right befor midnight.

"Oh, wow," Olivia said, silent tears dropping. "Best present ever."

Elliot chuckled. "Yeah, he is, baby." He dropped his head to kiss his son gently, then gave Olivia another sweet kiss. Everyone was so wrapped up in the emotional moment, watching the new baby wriggle and cry, watching Olivia and Elliot get lost in Josh and each other, that they didn't notice the bitter, cold expression on Doctor Rebecca Hendrix's face. But then again, Hendrix was so caught up in her jealousy and rage, that she couldn't see that if they had seen it, they wouldn't have cared.

**A/N: Happy Birthday, Joshie!!! Three months of doting parents and sweet fluffyness coming at ya, along with their return to work, and how do they handle a case with Hendrix? All if you want it! Review! **


	39. Chapter 39

**A/N: Keeping romance alive with a new baby in the house, for some husbands, is a bother. For Elliot, it's easy.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and its Characters belong to Dick Wolf. Storyline and dialogue, and narrative belong to TStabler©**

Elliot woke up, cold and lonely. That meant he was no longer firmly wrapped around his wife. He popped up and looked around, then jumped out of the bed with a smile. He padded softly toward the nursery and pushed the door open, and he saw her, with tiny Josh in her arms, swaying in the middle of the room, singing softly to him. Elliot walked softly into the room and wrapped his arms around Olivia, swaying with her. "How are you and Joshie doing, Mommy?"

"Perfect, Daddy," she replied, sleepily, looking from Josh's little face to Elliot. "Why are you up? I thought I got to him before he could wake you."

"I woke up when I didn't feel you next me anymore," he said, kissing her neck.

Olivia chuckled softly. "Look at him, El. He's really here, and he's really ours, and he's really..."

"Perfect. I know," Elliot said, grazing his finger lightly over his tiny cheek. "We've said that every night since we brought him home. I don't think I have ever been happier than I am right now."

Olivia hummed in agreement, turning around. "Dance with us, Daddy," she said, softly.

Elliot laughed quietly, then wrapped his arms around Olivia, as Josh was cradled between them, and he started swaying them slowly. He began signing, softly, too.

Olivia looked up at him and her eyes sparkled. "Our wedding song," she whispered.

Elliot nodded as he sang, and winked at Olivia. He pulled his wife and son closer and looked down, noticing that Josh's little, blue eyes were closing, and his tiny lips were curling up into a little, content grin. Olivia began to sing, softly, with him, and in seconds the baby was sound asleep. "Aw, Joshie, my little boy, when you're older, I'll tell you all about what that song means to Mommy and me," he said, lifting Josh carefully out of Olivia's arms. He placed a gentle kiss on his forehead and set him down in his crib, making sure the video monitor was aimed on him. "We're all good, baby," he said, reaching for Olivia's hand. He turned off the light and pulled her back into their room.

"He's such a little angel," Olivia said, smiling through her exhaustion. She made sure they could hear and see Josh on the monitor next to the bed and then she crawled in, nuzzling and snuggling up to Elliot.

Elliot wrapped his arms around her and nodded with a yawn. "That he is, gorgeous," he said, kissing Olivia. "Our little, tiny, six week old angel." He rested his forehead against hers and kissed her again. "I love you, baby."

"I love you, too, El," she whispered with a smile. "This has been amazing, hasn't it? Just you and me, home all day, nothing to worry about except the kids and the baby. No crimes, no perps , no vics."

"Yeah," Elliot said, running his hand down her arm. "But you and I both know that in two more months we're gonna be thrilled to get back to work."

Olivia looked up at him, smirking. "Something else I'm gonna be thrilled to get back to, too."

Elliot laughed. "Well, you know I'm definitely looking forward to that, baby. We have to go to the doctor tomorrow, and he'll let us know when we can. I know that some women just don't want..."

"El," Olivia interrupted, "I do want to make love to you, as soon as I can, you know that."

"I do know that, baby," Elliot said. "And trust me, you didn't have to do half the things you've done. Not that you don't give me the most incredible blow jobs in the world, Liv, but I'm perfectly content just holding you, baby. Until the doctor says you can, I'm..."

Her lips were on his before he could finish talking. "You're the most amazing man in the world, Elliot Stabler."

"That's only because I'm married to the most amazing woman in the world, Olivia Stabler," he responded, kissing her again. He held her close as he flicked off the lamp. The slept, happy and calm, in each other's arms.

* * *

Olivia, with Josh in her arms, giggled and cooed at him in the kitchen while Elliot flipped pancakes. "Who's the cutest, little boy in the whole, wide world? You are! Yes, you are!" Olivia said to Josh, making funny faces at him. He made little giggling noises at her in reply, and Elliot laughed from in front of the stove.

"God, I love you," he shouted over his shoulder. "Both of you."

"The feeling's mutual," Olivia said with a wink.

Elliot plopped the last pancake onto a platter and brought them to the table. "Kids! Breakfast!" he shouted, loudly. He walked over to Olivia and looked down at Josh. "Sorry, Joshie. No pancakes for you just yet. You get to have a nice, big, bottle of Mommy-milk." He chuckled as he handed Olivia the bottle he'd warmed for her. "When the kids leave I'll take a shower, then I'll stay with Joshie while you take a shower. We have to be at the doctor's office at ten."

"El," Olivia said. "Calm down, baby," she laughed. "We have plenty of..."

Elliot shoved a piece of pancake into her mouth and he groaned at the face she made. "I want him to tell me that I can make you make that face, without resorting to making pancakes!" he spat in an excited whisper. "Where are our children?" He ran over to the spiral stairs and yelled for them again.

"Daddy's being silly," Olivia cooed to Josh. "Yes, he is, Joshie."

Elliot laughed. "No, but Daddy's gonna be silly when the nice doctor says Daddy can have sex with Mommy." He kissed Olivia, who laughed against his lips, then he made a silly face at Josh and kissed his nose, earning a giggle in response.

Finally, the rest of the Stabler clan came running down the stairs. Elliot made sure he hugged and kissed each one, as did Olivia, and they filled in around the table, reaching for plates and pancakes, butter and syrup. As they began eating, the doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Elliot said, with a mouthful of pancakes. He ran to the door, looked through the peephole and opened it. "Hey, Fin! Hi, Case! What are you guys doing here?"

Fin grinned as he stepped into the house. "We, uh, wanted to tell you guys first. Um, where's Baby-Girl?"

"Liv!" Elliot yelled, "Come in here for a second. Fin and Casey are here."

Olivia emerged from the kitchen, holding Josh, and her eyes lit up when she saw Casey. "Oh, my God! You aren't!"

"We are," Casey said, grinning.

Elliot looked confused, but then he saw what Olivia had seen. The nice, big diamond on Casey's finger. "Wow, Fin," Elliot said, stunned. "You guys, congratulations!"

"Thanks, man," Fin said. "We wanted to ask, I mean, since you guys are the reason we're together anyway, if, uh..."

"Oh, Fin," Casey said, slapping his arm. "We want you and Olivia to be the best man and the maid of honor. Or, matron, since you're married, Benson."

"Stabler," Olivia said, rolling her eyes.

Casey rolled hers right back. "You are still Detective Benson, aren't you?"

Olivia furrowed her brow and moved Josh to her other shoulder. "Well, yeah, but that's only..."

"Then, shut up!" Casey spat with a laugh. "Gimme my Godson," she said, reaching for Josh.

Olivia chuckled as she handed him to Casey and then gave Fin a hug. "Congratulations, Fin," she said.

"Thanks," he said. "Oh, hey, do you want us to drop the kids off at school? We have to go that way to get to the station anyway."

Elliot sighed with a chuckle. "Man, that would be great, thanks."

"No prob," Fin said, smiling. "Hey! Stabler kids! Uncle Fin is taking you to school! Getcha asses in the car! Now!" he yelled into the kitchen.

Everyone heard the clinking of dropping forks and all four kids ran into the living room, grabbed their book-bags, kissed Olivia and Elliot on their cheeks, and jetted out the door, piling into Fin's car. "Wow," Casey said. "You have to work on your parenting skills. You scare the crap out of those kids!" She handed Josh to Elliot, gave Olivia a hug, and she and Fin left, taking the kids with them.

"Damn," Elliot said, smirking, handing Josh to Olivia with a kiss. "They're getting married?"

Olivia laughed and set Josh down into his baby-carrier. "Yes, they are." She stepped over to Elliot and kissed him, deeply, and nuzzled him. "But we're still the cuter couple."

"Damn straight," he added with another kiss. "Go shower. I'll clean up down here."

Olivia nodded, kissing him again, and walked up the stairs to shower and change, nervous about what the doctor might tell her, and what he'd have to say about Josh.

* * *

They were sitting in the doctor's office, Olivia on the table, Elliot in the chair beside her, holding Josh in his carrier. They heard the door open and Doctor Feinstein met them with a smile. He looked down into the carrier and grinned broadly. "Hello, there, Josh. Are you being a good boy for Mommy and Daddy?"

Elliot laughed. "Yeah," he said. "He slept almost through the night, last night. He's taking the bottle very well, which is a great relief for Liv. And he's kicking, giggling and smiling. He's a very vocal boy, too. He makes lots of little noises."

"And he loves his tummy time," Olivia added, happily. "He's even trying to push himself up already. He's not having any luck, though," she laughed.

"Good. Very good," the doctor said. "All signs of happy, healthy, and loved boy. And how are you, Olivia?"

"Can't complain," she said. "The first three weeks were awful, but I feel just fine now."

Doctor Feinstein drummed his fingers on the examination table and grinned. "Well, let's see how fine you are, huh?"

Olivia nodded and leaned back. Elliot immediately grabbed her hand, knowing she hated this. She was a Special Victims detective, so part of her always equated these kinds of exams with rape and molestation. She squeezed his hand, and he squeezed back, assuring her that he was right by her side, like he always had been. Like he always would be. The minutes went slowly, and her breathing only came with some effort. Finally, the doctor finished, and he looked up at her.

"Well, everything looks good," he said, smiling. "Your uterus has returned to it's normal size, and you've healed quite nicely. You should start exercising to tighten your muscles back up, as soon as you can."

"So, if we wanted to, uh, go horseback riding or something," Elliot said, raising an eyebrow, "When would we be able to go and uh, do that?"

Doctor Feinstein laughed. "Elliot, you and your wife are cleared to have sex whenever you want, as long as she feels up to it. Some women, after giving birth, just don't feel like it for months afterwards. If you do try, though, and there is any pain or discomfort at all, you need to stop. Some women can experience pain for up to a year after birth, so be patient and don't push it."

Elliot nodded. "I know that, Doc," he said. "I've done this before. And, no matter what, I will always put Liv first. Thanks, though."

"Anytime," the doctor said. "I'm looking forward to seeing you two in here again."

Olivia looked at the doctor. "Not for at least three years, Doc," she said with a chuckle. The doctor left, then Elliot looked at Olivia with narrow eyes. "What, El?"

"Three years?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Olivia raised one right back. "You would want another kid sooner?"

"Yeah, I would!" he said laughing. "I was thinking, maybe, when Josh is one or two, but not three, Liv." He kissed her and helped her off the table. He helped her change out of the paper gown and back into her clothes and then he noticed it. His eyes widened and he smirked.

"Okay, now what is that look for?" Olivia asked, pulling up her jeans.

"I told you, you never lost your body, it was just hiding under the baby," Elliot said, running a hand over her stomach. "Damn."

Olivia scoffed. "You just need to get laid," she spat.

"So do you," he said, wagging an eyebrow. "And we can both get laid, tonight."

Olivia laughed as she pulled her shirt on over her head. "I need to hit the gym, now that I've been told I can. I've got two months to be back in shape for work."

"We'll both go," Elliot said, pulling her into his arms. "We'll go on Saturdays, so Mo and Katie can watch Josh and the twins. It'll be Mommy and Daddy time."

"Where did you come from?" Olivia asked, looking into his eyes.

"See, Liv, one night, my mother and Ed Tucker..." Olivia rolled her eyes and smacked him in the arm. "Ow! Hey!" Elliot laughed, holding her closer. "Okay, what did you mean?"

Olivia kissed him. "You're really incredible. I just...I've never had a baby before, and from what I've heard and read, I was expecting to be doing most of this by myself, and I certainly was not expecting any romance."

"You will never do anything by yourself," Elliot said, kissing her. "Partners for life, Liv. And I fully intend to make every moment of our lives as romantic as possible." He kissed her again, picked up Josh in his carrier and walked her out of the exam room. They were happy and smiling as they walked back through the waiting room, but Olivia stopped and tugged on Elliot's arm. "What, baby? Did you leave something in the room?" Olivia shook her head and pointed to a pretty blonde, sitting on one of the waiting room chairs. Elliot's mouth dropped. "Is that..."

Olivia nodded. "Alex?" she called.

Alex looked up, saw Olivia and Elliot and her eyes widened. "Hi," she said, stunned. "Please, don't tell John."

**A/N: Oh, my! A wedding, another baby, and the all-clear for some smutty goodness. Oh, the possibilities! (And their wedding song was _Lucky_, by Jason Mraz and Colby Caillat.)**


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N: Confessions, fears, and a little smut. Not necessarily in that order.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf; this saga, and everything that goes it, belongs to TStabler©**

Olivia and Elliot waited for Alex, spending the time in the waiting room playing with Joshie and sharing sweet cuddles and kisses with him and each other. Every expectant mother and father in the room told them how beautiful the baby was, and commented on how happy and in love they looked.

Elliot, in response to each and every compliment, said "Thank you, very much, but we know that."

"Cocky bastard," Olivia chuckled under her breath. "But I love you, so much," she said, kissing him. They heard the "aww's" and "how cute's" and smirked against each other's lips.

When Alex finally emerged from the room, Olivia, with her son in her arms, rose and walked over to her. "Well? What did he say?"

"It's a baby," Alex said, not smiling. "A girl."

Olivia smiled sympathetically. "We're her for you, Al. And you know Munch will be thrilled," she said.

"No, Olivia," Alex said with a shake of her head. "We're not that serious, we don't even live together, this is not a good thing!"

Elliot picked up Josh's carrier and wrapped an arm around his wife. "That doesn't matter, Alex. Liv was pregnant before we got mar..."

"But you guys are different," Alex interrupted. "You're madly in love, you knew you wanted to be together forever since the minute you met, and you've been ridiculously inseperable for four damn years!" She ran a hand through her hair and continued, "Elliot, you're nothing like John. You're warm, doting, sensitive, and compassionate. You're a wonderful husband and you're an amazing father, and I watch you being so incredible with Olivia and it makes me want to cry, because you're everything I want that I'll never have, because John has given up on trying."

Elliot saw her tears fall and he sighed. "Alex, I know he's in love with you. I'm sure. One hundred percent," he said. "You have to tell him about this."

Alex took a deep breath and nodded. "I know," she said. "Thank you, both of you, for waiting here for me. I need to do the rest of this by myself." She hugged them and walked out of the building.

Elliot, his arm still around Olivia, led her out as well, dropping a kiss to her lips as they walked to their car. "It's official, Liv," he said. "We're fucking perfect."

Olivia laughed as she and Elliot took their son home.

* * *

"He's out like a light," Elliot said, walking into the bedroom, closing the door. "Woah." His eyes widened and darkened as he turned and looked at Olivia, lying on the bed in a black negligee.

"See something you like, Stabler?" She asked, smirking, as her head rested on one hand and the other toyed with the satin ribbon on her see-through top.

"Oh, God yes," Elliot choked out on a gasp. He practically ripped off his own clothes and leaped on the bed.

Olivia laughed, a hearty, throaty laugh, and rolled onto her back. "Someone's a little eager."

Elliot said nothing. He simply stared at her, stunned, running his hands over her body, which looked almost exactly as it did before she was pregnant. He took his time, carefully untying the satin bow and opening the robe-like top, then running his hands along her skin, slowly, as if it was the first time he was touching her. He slid his hands up and brushed his thumbs over her nipples through her black satin bra.

"Oh, El," Olivia whispered, her eyes fluttering shut.

Elliot thumbed them again, groaning as they hardened under his touch, and moved his hands slowly around to her back, unclasping and removing the offending, silk garment. "You are so beautiful, baby," he whispered to her, sliding the matching silk panties down her legs. He tossed them to the floor, and trickled his hands back up her legs, letting his fingers dip into her. "God damn, Liv," he gasped. "You're so tight, and so wet, and I gotta get inside you, baby."

Olivia moaned at his touch and his words and she tilted her head up, kissing him. She wrapped her arms around him as he pushed into her, slowly, for the first time since before she had the baby.

"Stop me if I hurt you," he whispered, kissing her, moving in further.

She nodded, but the only pain she was feeling so far was that usual pang of pain she felt whenever he made his initial thrust, as he stretched her. It hurt a bit more when he inched in deeper, since they hadn't been intimate in quite a while, but she didn't stop him, and she didn't plan on stopping him. She wanted to feel him, all of him, be close to him, love him like she hadn't been able to in weeks.

He heard her moan, not a moan he knew too well, and he looked down, concerned. "Liv? Are you okay?"

"Hmmm," she hummed, her lips pressed together, her eyes squeezed shut, and her head curling into his chest. "God, El, don't stop," she cried, lightly dragging her nails across his back.

Elliot dropped his head and kissed her, pushing the rest of the way into her. "Oh, my God," he barely breathed. He stilled, kissed her, and made sure she was okay before he slowly pulled out of her. He felt her nails digging into his flesh and he flexed and tensed every muscle in his body. "Jesus, Olivia," he gasped.

"El, please, baby," Olivia cried with a thrust of her hips.

Elliot knew, then, that it was okay for him to move, and when he did, he did so with care and tenderness, keeping his eyes and lips locked on hers. They made up for lost time, loving and worshipping each other intensely for a full hour. Elliot felt her clenching and trembling and heard her whimpers and cries and he brushed the hair out of her face, kissed her tenderly, and whispered, "Let go, baby. Please, baby. Cum for me, Liv."

Olivia threw her head back and growled, "Oh, God, Elliot!" Elliot followed quickly, with one more hard thrust, and as she clamped down on him he let go, too, grunting her name and something that sounded like "I love you," but she had gone temporarily deaf, so she couldn't be certain. She stopped shaking when he reclaimed her lips and kissed her back down to Earth. He held her, stroked her hair back, and deepened the kiss, when they heard Josh gurgle and cry through the monitor.

"I'll get him," Elliot said, wiping away what might've been a tear from his eye as he kissed Olivia again, and pulled out of her, rolled out of the bed, threw on his pants, and bolted into the nursery.

Olivia watched the door for a minute after he left with tears in her own eyes. She couldn't believe what had just happened, but she knew that the pain was worth it, since it was one of the most pleasurable experiences of both of their lives.

* * *

"Mom, Dad, we're home," Maureen shouted, walking into the living room followed by Lizzie and Dickie.

"Where's Kathleen?" Elliot asked, from his spot on the couch.

Dickie hopped on the couch and said, "She's coming."

"Where's Mom?" Maureen asked, looking around.

"She's making dinner," Elliot answered, "Joshie's in the kitchen with her, in his carrier, if you...okay, then," he said, watching his oldest child run into the kitchen to play with his youngest.

Kathleen walked through the door and handed her father a wrapped box. "Here it is," she said.

"Why did you wrap it, honey? I wanted to see it," Elliot whispered, leaning forward.

"They wrapped it, Daddy. The guy was very eager to use his new 'golden pearl' wrapping paper. But I saw it, Grandpa Don saw it, it's beautiful," Kathleen said.

Elliot chuckled. "She doesn't even remember that it's her birthday. Where is your...oh, there you are. Don, thanks for picking them up, and thanks for going to get this," he said holding up the box. "Everyone should be here soon. Can I get you a soda?"

"Uh, yeah," Cragen said, smiling. "And my new grandson," he added.

Elliot smiled and walked into the kitchen. "Mo, honey, bring Joshie out to Grandoa Don, okay?"

"Okay," Maureen said, cheerfully carrying the baby boy out of the room.

Elliot smirked as he walked over to Olivia. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek. "Don's here," he said. "Fin and Casey are on their way, and Alex and Munch should be coming, if they're speaking to each other after she told him about the baby."

Olivia turned to look at him. "I don't think I'm making enough ravioli for..."

"Fin's bringing pizzas," Elliot said. "Are you forgetting something, baby?"

"No," Olivia said, furrowing her brow, tilting her head.

Elliot laughed and held out the box. "Happy birthday, kitten," he said, kissing her.

Olivia's eyes widened. "Holy shit," she said, bringing a hand to her mouth and gasping. "Really? That's today?"

"Yeah," Elliot laughed. "Open it, honey."

Olivia pulled the white ribbon off of the box, then peeled back the pearly gold wrapping paper. "Tiffany's," she whispered.

"Of course," Elliot said. "It's where I get all of your jewelry, baby."

Olivia smiled at him, shaking her head, and lifted the hinged lid of the blue box and gasped, again. The silver necklace was beautiful and she cried when she realized what the pendant was. A silver charm, depicting a mother holding a baby, with diamonds where their heads were. "El, it's..." she broke off as tears slid down her cheeks.

"Shh," Elliot interrupted. He brushed away her tears, kissed her, and took the necklace out of the box. "We both did enough crying today, Liv. During sex, no less," he chuckled quietly.

Olivia smiled and sniffled at him, looping her arms around his neck, and he put the necklace on for her. "I love you," she whispered into his ear.

"I love you, too, baby," Elliot whispered back.

They heard the doorbell ring, and Olivia pulled away from Elliot. "Stir the sauce," she said, rubbing his arm. "I'll get the door." She walked into the living room, kissed the rest of her kids, and hugged Cragen, then opened the door. Fin and casey, looking happy, walked in with arms filled with presents. "What did you guys do?" Olivia asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Half of this is for you," Fin said, "Birthday Baby-Girl," he added with a laugh.

Casey smiled. "The rest of it is for our Godson, one gift for each niece and nephew, and something for Elliot."

"You got something for Elliot?" Olivia asked, suspiciously.

Casey leaned over and whispered, "Well, it'll be on you, really, but it's for him. I figured you could wear it tonight, get a little birthday sex."

"Oh, good grief, Novak!" Olivia yelped, laughing. "Thank you, guys. You can put them in the den, which is where, I assume, we're going."

Fin winked at her and he and Casey walked down the spiraling stairs, out of sight, carrying their gifts. Before Olivia could turn to go back into the kitchen, the doorbell rang again. She opened it, quickly, and the only thing she could say was, "El!"

Elliot ran in, a saucy wooden spoon in his hand, and flew over to the door. "Liv, baby, what...Alex, what happened?"

"Why are you crying? Did you tell him?" Olivia asked, pulling her into a hug.

"I didn't get the chance," Alex said, sniffling. "He told me he wasn't sure he could be in a serious relationship right now. He broke up with me. He still doesn't know I'm pregnant."

"He does now," Elliot said, with a worried face, looking at Munch, who had just appeared on the steps behind Alex.

**A/N: What does Munch do? What happens when Olivia and Elliot return to work and trust the precinct daycare with Joshie? How does their first case with Hendrix as the psych. reference go? All coming up! Review! **


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N: What happened with Munch and Alex? And three months goes by, way too soon.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf; this saga, and everything that goes it, belongs to TStabler©**

"Okay, Joshie," Elliot said cooing and waving at his son. "You be a good boy for the nice lady." He kissed his son's forehead, brushed his full head of thick, black hair back and looked at the daycare provider. "He's got six bottles in here," he said, tapping the side of the diaper bag. "If you need more just call up to the unit and Liv will come down. He needs at least ten minutes of tummy time, and his favorite teddy bear is in the bag, along with his rattle, three binkies, and three sets of clothes. And he likes to roll over now, so don't leave him on the floor alone."

"Detective Stabler," the woman said, taking the bag, "I think I can handle it."

Elliot sighed. "I know, I'm sorry. We just haven't left his side in three months so this is...hard."

Olivia, holding her son tightly, rocking him in her arms, said, "I can't do this, El. I don't wanna go up there. I wanna stay with my baby, honey."

"Liv, baby, I do, too, but we can't," Elliot said, lifting the infant out of Olivia's arms.

Olivia kissed Josh and said, "Mommy and Daddy will be down to see you in a couple of hours, sweetie-pie." She looked up at the woman and said, "He gets cranky when he's tired and he won't go to sleep unless he hears me or Elliot, so you might need to call us, and hold the phone to his ear."

"Detective Benson," the woman said, rolling her eyes, "I'm sure it's all in the really thick manual you left us."

Olivia nodded. "It is, but I just..."

"Liv, honey, we are clearly annoying the nice people at the precinct daycare center," Elliot said, handing his son to the woman. "Thank you, Doreen." He wrapped an arm around Olivia and walked with her to the elevator, heading back to work.

* * *

"Good Mor...hello?" Olivia asked, confused. She looked around the bullpen and it appeared to be empty.

Elliot walked into the pit and back out. "No one's in interrogation," he said, shrugging.

"Surprise!" they heard, a thunderous cry from the cribs.

"Come up here, guys," Cragen said, waving them up.

Olivia and Elliot looked at each other, then walked up the stairs. "What is going on in...what is that?"

"It's a crib," Fin said. "A crib in the cribs. Fitting, right?"

Elliot held a hand to his chest. "What's it doing in here?" he asked, having a feeling he already knew.

"My grandson is only three months old. He's not staying with total strangers," Cragen said, folding his arms. "Go get him," he said, holding up a box, "And we'll hook up the monitor. He can stay with us, here, until you're comfortable leaving him in the daycare center."

Olivia hugged her pseudo-father, and cried, "Thank you," as Elliot bolted down to get his son.

"I, uh, hope the same service will be offered to me and Alex, Cap?" Munch asked, peering over his sunglasses.

Cragen smirked and nodded. "Have you two decided what you're doing, yet?"

Munch shrugged. "I have. I told her everything. I told her, uh, I didn't think she wanted me anymore, ya know? When she told me about the baby...well, I mean, when I found out, I freaked out. Panicked. That's why we didn't stay at your party, Benson."

"I know," Olivia said. "Alex told me."

Munch sighed. "But we're working on it, I mean, I want this baby, and I want her, and she knows that now. I just need her to decide if I'm the kind of guy she really wants. She hasn't returned any of my calls in over a week."

Fin slapped his partner on the shoulder. "She'll come around, man," he said. "She has to, Munch."

"Hey!" Elliot yelled up the stairs. "Someone not carrying a baby needs to come down here and take this phone call," he called.

Cragen laughed and headed down the stairs, followed by Munch, switching places with Elliot. Elliot walked back into the cribs, carrying Josh, smiling as he placed the little guy in his new crib. "You are one terribly loved little boy, Joshie."

"Ain't that the truth," Fin said, peering over at his Godson. "Here," he said, handing Elliot the receiver. "I'm sure if we hear him so much as breathe too loudly, we're all runnin' up here, but you're the daddy. It stays on the desk you share with the mommy." Fin slapped Elliot on the shoulder and walked out of the cribs.

Elliot chuckled as he wrapped an arm around Olivia, and they both looked over the side of the crib at their son. "We did that," he said, watching Josh's little blue eyes blink as he smiled at his parents.

"We certainly did," Olivia said, stroking his tiny cheek. They watched as, with Olivia's touch, Josh's eyes closed and his breathing evened out. He fell asleep with a tiny smile on his cute, little face.

* * *

"Come in," Cragen said, when there was a knock on his door.

Elliot walked into his office and sat, rubbing his hands on his knees. "Cap, I..."

"Don't," Cragen said.

"No, Cap, I need to thank you," Elliot said, firmly. "I don't know what strings you pulled to get One-P-P to allow us to keep a baby in the department, but..."

"Ed used the old, 'Do you know who I am?' line, I threatened people, and when they found out whose baby we were talking about, it wasn't really an issue anymore, Elliot," Cragen said, dismissively. "You can thank me by getting out there and doing your job. We got a perp coming in, courtesy of Fin and Munch. You and your wife have the honor of interrogating him."

Elliot chuckled. "Gee, thanks," Elliot said, shaking his head.

"Anytime," Cragen laughed. "Let's get outta here, Stabler."

Elliot nodded, leaving the office with his captain, just in time to see Fin and Munch bring in a rather neurotic looking man in cuffs. "I got it," Elliot said, taking the man. "Keep an ear out, would ya?" he asked, jerking his head toward the cribs.

Fin nodded. "You got it man."

"Hey, uh, Benson," Elliot teased, "Let's go."

Olivia narrowed her eyes and smirked at him as Munch handed her a file. She read through it, quickly, following Elliot and the perp into the room as Cragen watched from the pit.

Olivia shut the file, handed it off to Elliot, and said, "So, Terry, you got popped for pulling down ladies' panties and grabbing 'em where the sun don't shine?"

"Sun doesn't shine anywhere in New York," the man mumbled quickly, rocking back and forth. "So dark in this city. I should move to Florida. Or Arizona. I like the sun, where it's sunny."

Olivia raised an eyebrow and glanced at Elliot. "Oh...kay," she said, confused. "Well, why don't you tell us about the ladies, Terry? Why did you grab them?"

"Grabbing isn't nice," he said, shaking his head. "You shouldn't grab people, unless they grab you first. Then you're only grabbing them back. An eye for an eye, right?"

Elliot scoffed. "Then the whole world goes blind," he said, under his breath.

"Blindness isn't a bad thing," the man named Terry said, looking at Elliot. "Too much ugly in the world. Better to be blind and be saved from the ugly, than have to see all of the ugly with very little pretty." He turned to Olivia and said, "You're pretty though, very pretty. I'd be sad if I was blind, to not see you. You could make the ugly go away." He looked back at Elliot and asked, "Couldn't she? Couldn't she make all the bad and ugly go away?"

Elliot smiled and nodded. "That's exactly what she does, Terry. Excuse me," he said, walking out of the room. He walked into the pit and looked at Cragen. "Cap, that man is a few sandwiches short of a picnic," he said, pointing through the two way mirror. "Is he smelling my wife?" he asked, tilting his head as he watched Terry sniff a very confused looking Olivia.

"Yes," Cragen said. "He is. Can you blame him?"

"Not really," Elliot said. "What do we do? We can't even talk to him."

Cragen sighed, with folded arms. "I'll call Hendrix. Go back in there before Fruit-Loops McQuack starts grabbing your wife's, uh, sunshine."

Elliot's eyes widened as he ran back into the room and Cragen went to call the doctor.

* * *

"Well," Rebecca Hendrix said, coming out of the interrogation room, "There is no way that he is sane, Elliot. In fact, there's no way he even knows where he is right now."

Elliot turned around and looked at her. "That's wonderful. What do you suggest we do with him?"

"I suggest you tell your A.D.A. to ask the judge to release him into the care of a mental health facility, or try to locate a family member," Rebecca said, walking closer to Elliot's desk. "Speaking of family, Elliot, where's your wife?"

"Upstairs, feeding our son," he said, turning his attention back to his paperwork.

Rebecca smirked. "And the other hapless twits who work in this unit?"

"Up there with her," he said, still not looking up. He only looked up when she sat on his desk, in the middle of his opened files. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all," Hendrix said, smiling down at Elliot. "Life after baby, Elliot, is usually very, uh, dry for couples. If you, uh, need to vent any, certain, frustrations..."

"Our sex life is fanfuckingtastic, Doc," Elliot said, backing up and getting out of his seat. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to be with my wife and son. I assume you're going to schedule a seven-thirty exam with Terry and tell Cragen what you told me, right?" He walked up the stairs to the cribs without so much as a glance over his shoulder.

"Damn," Rebecca muttered. This was gonna be harder than she thought.

* * *

Olivia yawned as she padded into the bedroom, pulling down the sheets and crawling in next to Elliot. "The whole house is finally asleep," she said with another yawn. "I forgot how exhausting our job really is," she mumbled, cuddling up with him.

"It wasn't this exhausting before, baby," he said, kissing the top of her head. "You're a new mommy. You're already exhausted before we even get to work."

"Hmm," Olivia agreed, nodding. "You smell so damn good, you know that?"

Elliot laughed. "You've told me, kitten. You were right, by the way. The second I was alone with her, she tried something."

"I'm gonna kick her ass," Olivia said, nuzzling Elliot's chest. "If I can find the energy."

"Baby," Elliot chuckled, "Look at me," he said, cupping her chin and bringing her face up to meet his. He kissed her, hard, and said, "I didn't even look at her, Liv."

"I know you didn't, El," Olivia said, kissing him. "I still don't have to put up with her trying shit. If that was Dean, or Trevor..."

"Dead," Elliot spat, venomously.

"See?" Olivia chuckled. She kissed him again, dragging her lips over his, letting her tongue sweep across his, slowly, languidly. "I love you," she whispered as she kissed him, and tugged on his pajama bottoms.

"I love you, too, but I thought you were exhausted," Elliot teased, tracing his fingers along the hem of her top, before pulling it over her head.

Olivia bit and tugged on his bottom lip. "Never too tired for this," she said quietly, raking her hands up and down his bare chest.

"God damn, baby," he gasped. "Those nails."

Olivia chuckled, feeling Elliot pull on her bottoms. She kicked them off and climbed over and on top of him, but Elliot swooped her up and flipped them over.

"Uh-uh," he said, shaking his head. "You stay down there," he teased, pushing inside of her. They both gasped at the contact and Olivia threw her head backward into the pillow, biting her bottom lip. Before Elliot could start thrusting, though, his phone rang. "Damn it to hell," he fumed, reaching over to the bedside table to pick it up. "Stabler!" he yelled, annoyed. "Yes, as a matter of fact you are interrupting something," he spat, giving a hard thrust into Olivia.

"Oh, Elliot," Olivia moaned.

"What?" Elliot said, both to Olivia and into the phone. He moved, deep and hard into and out of his wife, while having the conversation. "Oh, yeah, baby" he said to Olivia. Then into the phone he spat, "What, no, not you! Look, I can't really...Jesus Christ, baby...talk right now. Call Cragen, or Fin. Holy shit, Liv," he said through gritted teeth.

"Damn, El, baby," Olivia groaned, "Either get off the goddamn phone or stop moving."

Elliot chuckled. "Gotta go, Doc. Liv's making me choose." He snapped his phone shut and bent over to kiss Olivia, deeply, as he hit into her all the way.

"Who the fuck...El, this feels so damn good...was that?" she asked, moaning.

Elliot picked up his pace, wrapping his arms around Olivia's waist and lifting her slightly off the bed as he said, "Hendrix."

Olivia laughed and groaned at the same time, wrapping her arms tighter around Elliot. "Think she'll leave you...oh, my God...alone now?" Olivia asked, hiking a leg around his waist.

"Shit, baby," Elliot grunted, kissing her. "I have no clue, but, fuck, that was fun."

* * *

"Alex," Munch called through the door. "Come on, Al, open the door. Please?"

Alex opened the door and sighed. "John, I don't know if...oh, my God."

"I don't know what else to do to prove to you that it was just my insecurity, Alex," Munch said, holding out the ring. "I love you, and I want to be this baby's father. If you'll let me."

Alex felt tears running down her cheeks. She couldn't speak. She simply nodded.

**A/N: Two weddings, a baby? Yep! And Cragen's son comes for a visit, along with his mother. Has Cragen been keeping a secret from his "family"? **


	42. Chapter 42

**A/N: What has Cragen been hiding? And how far will Hendrix really go, and when she can't have him, what does she consider the next best thing?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story.**

"Excuse me," a pretty blonde, in her fifties, said, wandering into the squadroom. She was followed by a very handsome man, around Olivia's age. "Is this the Special Victim's Unit?"

Olivia, quirking an eyebrow at her, said, "Yes. I'm Detective Benson. Can I help you?"

"Oh, my," the woman said, holding out her hand. "Olivia, is it?"

"Yeah," Olivia replied, confused. "And you are?"

"You are just as pretty as he told me you were. And that must make you Elliot!" she declared, holding her out to Elliot, smiling brightly.

Elliot shook her hand, as confused as his wife was, and said, "Yep."

"You two," the lady began, "Just looking at you, I can tell that you're in love. Completely infatuated with each other, actually. The body language, you know? Turned into each other, slightly leaning in each other's direction, the way you…"

"Mom," the man to her left interrupted. "Please, don't do that to them." He looked at Olivia and Elliot and held out his hand, shaking theirs. "Sorry. She works for the Behavioral Analysis Unit with the FBI. She likes to read people."

The woman smiled. "It isn't like I don't already know you, anyway. The way Don talks about you both, and the baby!"

"Don?" Olivia said, her lips curling at the edges. "Oh, wow! You're David!" she exclaimed, pointing to the young man.

"Yes, I am. I feel like I know the both of you already, so I didn't introduce myself," he said, shrugging.

Elliot smiled. "It's an honor, man. Any son of the captain's is, well, uh, automatically like a brother to us."

"Thanks," David said, smiling.

Cragen stepped out of his office, carrying two files. "Okay, Benson, Stabler! We have to…Polly! What are you doing here?"

"We wanted to surprise you!" the woman said, wrapping her arms around Cragen. "I know we told you we'd meet you at the diner, but it just seemed like the right time to…"

"It wasn't," Cragen interrupted, still surprised. "I mean, I'm happy that you're here, but, uh, I didn't really tell them…"

"Oh! Oh, wow," Polly said, backing away from Cragen. "I'm sorry, Don. I thought you had told them."

"Told us what, exactly?" Elliot said, furrowing his brow and crossing his arms.

Cragen cleared his throat and put the files on Elliot's desk. "Guys, this is, uh, Polly Ann Donahue. My son's mother."

"We figured that out, Cap," Olivia said, smirking. "We're detectives. Damn good ones."

Cragen nodded and swallowed back hard. "And, we are getting married."

Elliot's eyes widened. "Wow! That's wonderful! And, uh, thank you for telling us," he said, his mouth dropping just a bit. "Cap, why didn't you…"

"You just had the baby," Cragen interjected. "And we've been so busy around here, I didn't want you to make a huge fuss over this."

"You made a huge fuss over us," Elliot said, gesturing between himself and Olivia. "A lot of huge fusses!"

Cragen rubbed his forehead and said, "That's different, you two are like my kids, and…"

"And you're like my father," Olivia said, firmly. "When are you two getting married, exactly?"

"Two months," Cragen sighed. "I was going to take you both out to dinner, introduce you to Polly, formally, and tell you. Elliot, uh, I was gonna ask you two to be our witnesses. This isn't huge, guys. Just us and a judge at City Hall."

Elliot smiled. "We'd be honored."

"So, uh," Cragen began, awkwardly, pointing to the files on Elliot's desk. "That's our new case and…" he was interrupted by the sound of a crying baby, through the monitor on Olivia's desk. "And that is my grandson."

"I'll go," Olivia said, brushing a hand down Elliot's arm.

"May I come with you?" Polly asked, eagerly. "I'd love to meet Joshua."

Olivia smiled. "Of course. David, uh, wanna meet your nephew?"

"Damn right, I do!" David said, smiling. He didn't expect such a warm and instant welcome into the family, but he wanted one, desperately. He and his mother followed Olivia into the cribs and watched as she leaned over the actual crib in the room and picked up Joshie.

"Oh, he is just beautiful," Polly said, watching the baby wriggle happily in Olivia's arms, sucking on his bottle.

Olivia lifted Josh up onto her shoulder and patted his back, trying to get him to burp, and said, "Thank you." They were all stunned when a very loud belching noise came from little Josh, and Olivia chuckled. "You are definitely Elliot's son," she said.

"He'd better be," Elliot said, chuckling, as he walked in and wrapped an arm around Olivia.

David looked over at Elliot and nodded. "God bless him, man. He's one rockin' little dude."

"That he is, thanks," Elliot said, taking the baby form Olivia and making a goofy face at him. Josh giggled, making everyone else laugh.

"So, we should put him back down and go to work, then," Olivia said with a sigh.

"Grandpa Don handed it off to Uncle Munch and Uncle Fin," Elliot said in a tiny, funny voice, as he tickled and cooed at his son.

Olivia laughed at the scene in front of her and asked, "And why is that, Daddy?"

Elliot blew a raspberry at Josh, earning a hard, baby-laugh, and said, "Well, Mommy, one of the guys was gonna need a psych-eval, and I wasn't in the mood to deal with Hendrix. I'll wait till she comes down here later to see if she can look either one of us in the eye." He winked at his wife and then looked over at Polly. "Do you wanna hold him?"

"Oh, yes, please!" Polly said, gratefully taking the tiny bundle from Elliot. "Hello, Joshie."

Elliot smiled at Olivia. "Cragen really must have told them everything," he said as he kissed her.

"Oh, he did," David said, nodding. "He won't stop talking about you guys. He wanted me to know everything so I knew what I'd be walking into." He looked down at the baby and smiled softly. "You called him my nephew, and you don't even know me," he said, trailing a finger across Josh's cheek, lightly. "That means a lot to me."

"Well, David," Olivia said, leaning closer to Elliot, "You're family."

David smiled at her, warmly. "I guess that makes you my sister, then?"

"Something like that," Olivia laughed. She took Josh out of Polly's arms, rocked him gently twice, and watched him fall asleep, fast. She put him down in his crib and led Elliot, David, and Polly back down to the squadroom. "Where are we on this?" she asked, catching Fin's eye.

"Hendrix is in interrogation room one with this guy," Fin said, handing Olivia a file.

Munch handed Elliot another file and said, "That guy claims he had nothing to do with anything."

"Don't they always?" Elliot said, looking at the file. "So, Hendrix is…"

"Right behind you, Stabler," Rebecca said, coming out of the interrogation room.

Olivia's eyes narrowed instantly; she heard the seduction dripping from every word. "Hi," she said, tilting her head. "What's the story?"

Rebecca moved closer, and placed her hand on Elliot's shoulder. "He's very aggressive, very manipulative, but sane. He knows what he's been doing is wrong."

"Do you?" Elliot asked, bitterly, brushing her hand off of his shoulder.

Rebecca met his eyes. She saw no feeling registering in them. They looked cold. Hers, however, had darkened and widened. "What do you mean?"

"You know damn well what I mean," Elliot spat at her, whispering, not wanting to embarrass her or himself. "Either you stop, right now, and give up, or Liv is gonna kill ya. I'm gonna help her."

Rebecca chuckled, narrowing her eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she said, her hand resting on his knee, sliding it up.

Elliot immediately got up off of his desk, backed away from her, and shook his head. "Never gonna happen," he said to Hendrix, a vile look in his eyes.

As he walked into the interrogation room, Rebecca whispered to herself, "Oh, it is."

"No," Olivia said, behind her. "It's not. And if you touch him, at all, ever again, I'll arrest you for sexually assaulting an officer." She heard Hendrix gasp and then took two steps toward the interrogation room. "Oh," she said, turning back toward Hendrix. "Did you enjoy your little conversation with my husband last night? Did you like everything you heard? Was it fun for you? Because it was a fucking blast for us," she said with a laugh.

Rebecca watched her walk into the room with pure hatred in her eyes. Then she smirked, remembering that phone call. It was fun, actually. A lot of fun. She shook her head and walked out of the squadroom, eager to put her new plan into effect.

Cragen, Munch and Fin, staring after her, heaved a collective sigh. "Do you think it's really Stabler she wants, or do you think she's just trying to hurt Benson?" Munch asked.

"Why would she wanna hurt Olivia?" Cragen asked.

Munch raised an eyebrow. "Benson got a gold shield, Hendrix didn't. That's why she decided to change professions."

"Wait," Fin said, furrowing his brow. "You think Hendrix is holding a grudge because Baby-Girl got promoted? I think the doctor lady is just hot for Stabler."

Munch nodded. "It could be a bit of both," he said, shrugging. "Truth be told, I can't wait till this blows up in her face. How far do you think she'll go?"

Fin shrugged. "She's already verging on too damn far," he said, scoffing. "She better watch her step."

* * *

"All five Stabler kids are present and accounted for," Olivia said, stepping up behind Elliot and wrapping her arms around him. "And they are all fast asleep," she added.

Elliot grunted, sounding irritated, as he slammed the dresser drawer shut. He threw his tee shirt to the floor, not even bothering to put it on, and ran his hands through his hair.

"El, baby, let it go. Don't bring work into bed with us," Olivia said, sliding her hands down into his sweatpants. "That last guy, and Hendrix, they really got to you, huh? You got so…angry."

Elliot moaned. "Jesus Christ, Liv," he gasped, feeling her hands tease and play with him.

"Something wrong?" Olivia asked, innocently.

"God, no," he said, turning around. "Everything is just perfect." He kissed her, roughly, and pulled on her pants. They dropped to the floor, as did his, and he tossed her onto the bed. She pulled her top off and tossed it away, and watched Elliot's eyes widen. "Damn, baby," he cried, looking at her.

"What?" she asked, smirking as he crawled on top of her. "Your body, Liv. How the fuck am I supposed to have any self control when you look like this? When I'm as pissed off as I am?" he asked, his lips moving lightly over her neck.

"I guess going to the gym is really paying off," Olivia said with a laugh. "And, uh, I certainly get a workout with you, every night." She used her nails and lightly dragged her fingertips up and down his shaft.

Elliot growled, latching onto her pulse, biting and sucking. "Fucking hell, Liv," he breathed against her neck. "I'm trying to calm down, here, so i don't hurt you."

"It's Saturday, El," Olivia said, smirking. "You don't have to calm down."

"Oh, hell yes," he interrupted. He suddenly grabbed both of Olivia's wrists with one hand and tugged them up, holding them above her head. He clasped his other hand over her mouth, leaned over and whispered, "I don't wanna wake the baby. Bite me if you have to." He rammed into her and felt her teeth sink into his middle finger. "Shit, baby," he panted, moving at a rough, hard, frenzied pace.

Olivia was moaning into his hand, trying to stay as quiet as she could, and struggling against his grasp on her hands was torturously wonderful. She bit him again, hard, making him yelp slightly and move his hand. "Let me go," she breathed, looking into his eyes.

Elliot, slamming into her, grunting, slid his hand off of her wrists and down her body. "I love you," he whispered, not letting up his hard pistoning. "God, I need you," he cried, his forehead dropping to hers.

"You have me," Olivia said through gritted teeth. "Always. I love you, too, baby," she gasped, meeting his incredibly hard thrusts. She wrapped her arms and legs around him, taking everything he gave her. Nights like this, when work and the people they worked with pissed them off, it felt so damn good to go this hard. "Oh, fuck, El!" she yelled in a throaty whisper, clutching him tighter.

Elliot felt her nails dig into his back. He remembered the last time they did this, and he had to let her know. "Baby, oh, God, baby, if I'm hurting you…"

"Don't stop," Olivia spat. "You know I can handle it. God damn, Elliot!" she cried, reaching for his hand. She slipped one of his fingers into her mouth, sucking hard.

"Holy shit, Olivia," Elliot grunted, hitting into her. It felt so good, but he knew she was only keeping herself quiet. She let his finger go with a pop and her eyes rolled back into her head. He watched as her head began to thrash, and her hips bucked. Her back arched. She pressed her lips together, tightly. She squeezed her eyes shut. "Hold on, honey," Elliot pleaded. He watched her twist the sheets into a ball and her breathing sped up. She shook her head violently. Elliot groaned at the sight. He moved his hand from her hip to her mouth, pressing down as hard as he could and said, "Scream."

Olivia let a violent, long, loud, string of obscenities and screaming "Oh, God, yes, Elliot's" into his hand. Her back flew up off the bed and with his last three powerful, violent thrusts, Elliot replaced his hand with his lips, catching her screams and moans in his mouth as he grunted and groaned his own release. They collapsed into a heaping pile of sweat and flesh as they did nothing but breathe and kiss to fall down from the high they were on, blissfully unaware that they were being watched. The entire time.

**A/N: Uh-oh! Who was watching and how? From where? And next chap is a family Sunday! An extended family Sunday, that is! Review?**


	43. Chapter 43

**A/N: Olivia takes a step back during a Sunday outing to try and grasp her new reality. And, what happens when Elliot finds out someone's been watching him with Olivia?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story.**

"I think Father Michaels is starting to like you, Mom," Kathleen said, smiling at Olivia.

Olivia smirked. "I think he's only tolerating me because that is a house of God and he's not allowed to be scornful of anyone during time of worship."

"Liv!" Elliot chided, chuckling.

"What?" Olivia asked, laughing, as she put the baby in his rear-facing car-seat.

"Nothing, baby," Elliot said, shaking his head. "Everyone, buckle up. Park first today. Grandpa Don has a surprise for us," he informed his family. They piled into the SUV and drove off, heading home first to change out of their Sunday Best and into things more suited for a day at the park, then met their Grandpa Don in Central Park.

"Hey, Cap," Elliot said, out of habit.

Cragen narrowed his eyes and flattened his lips, smacked Elliot in the back of the head roughly, and said, "On Sundays, it's Don, kid."

"Ow," Elliot said, rubbing the back of head, shocked that Cragen had really just smacked him that hard.

Olivia was stifling her laughter as she took Josh, baby carrier and all, out of the backseat. "That was classic," she said to her husband.

"We'll see what you say when he smacks you," Elliot said, kissing her forehead and taking the baby from her.

"He'd never smack me, El," Olivia teased, "I'm his little girl."

Elliot rolled his eyes and nodded, "Yeah, yeah."

"And you have a harder head than I do," she added, for extra prodding. He turned and gave her a narrow-eyed look, trying to seem pissed off, but he burst into laughter. He wrapped his free arm around her and walked, with his family, to the area where Polly and David were waiting. When they got to the patch of grass, Olivia gasped. Cragen, Polly, and their son had set out a huge picnic blanket with a large spread of food, and David had set up a few plastic bases.

"Baseball?" Dickie cried cheerfully.

"Yeah, buddy!" David yelled from the plastic pitcher's mound he'd just thrown down.

Dickie blinked. "I don't know you, but I like you!" he yelled, running over to David.

"Dickie, that's my son, Dave," Cragen called after him. "Come on kids, I'll introduce ya," he said to the girls, taking them over to David.

Olivia and Elliot watched them go, and Olivia, finding a comfy spot on the blanket for Joshie to rest on his tummy and play with his new Grandma Polly, sighed. "How did all of this happen, El?" she asked, feeling him wrap his arms around her.

Elliot hummed. "Well, one day, four years ago, this incredible gorgeous, really obnoxious brunette walked into the squadroom…ow!" he yelped. "What is with people hitting me in the head, today?" he laughed, kissing her.

"You know what I meant!" she laughed back at him. "El, two years ago I was only dreaming about this life with you. Now, we have a beautiful three-month-old-son, four amazing kids, a house that would make Donald Trump jealous, and for the first time in my life I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that you aren't going anywhere. And look," she said, pointing to the game being played. "Don's happy. He's getting married, El. He has a son. We have a son. You and me. I'm still baffled by all of this."

Elliot chuckled and kissed Olivia hard on the lips. "Me, too, baby," he said, smiling. "I should have chased you around your apartment a lot sooner, ya know? Getting your cute, little ass stuck in that sink was the best damn thing that's ever happened," he told her, kissing her again. "We need to figure out where we wanna go, baby," he mumbled against her lips.

"I don't think we can go anywhere from here, El," Olivia replied, looking into his eyes.

Elliot chuckled. "I meant, for our anniversary. It's coming up."

"In four months," Olivia said, raising an eyebrow, smirking.

"Yeah," Elliot said. "Which is barely enough time to plan. We need to pick a destination, book a flight and a hotel, baby, we gotta get a move on."

Olivia looked at him and tilted her head. "Why do we need to…"

"Because," Elliot interrupted. "Our honeymoon was cut short. And while we did come home to a living room full of Honolulu, it was still not the same. I want a week, alone, with you, in a bikini," he told her, punctuating each paused phrase with a brilliant kiss. "Or, ya know, naked."

"I can get naked at home," Olivia whispered to him, capturing his lips in a soulful kiss.

Elliot moaned into her mouth, let out a small chuckle, and shook his head. "Not for a whole week," he said, pulling back from their kiss. "And we're never really alone," he said, dropping his head to hers.

Josh, from Polly's arms, began to wail his little baby cry. "I think someone wants his Mommy and Daddy," Polly said, in a song-song voice.

"See what I mean," Elliot laughed. He unwrapped his arms from around Olivia and reached out to take his son from Polly. "Hey, buddy! How's my little man?" he asked Joshie, wiggling him, his blue eyes brightening up and his smile widening.

Olivia smiled and her eyes filled with tears, but they dried before they fell. Not before they were noticed though.

"I saw that," Elliot said, cradling his son in arms, leaning into Olivia so their child could be held by both of them. "What was with the almost-crying?"

"The way you are with him," she said. "I fall in love with you all over again, every time I look at you when you look at him."

Elliot looked up from Josh to Olivia. "Hey," he said, making her do the same, meeting her eyes. "I fall in love with you all over again, every time I look at you at all, so we're even," he said. He bent over the baby and kissed her sweetly.

"Dad!" Maureen yelled from third base, "Come on! We need you! Dave's kicking our butts!"

Olivia and Elliot chuckled, then sighed. "We'll start thinking of places tonight," Olivia said, kissing Elliot once more as he got off the blanket.

"Yeah?" Elliot asked, excitedly.

"Yeah, we need a vacation," Olivia said, winking at him.

Elliot chuckled, then jogged over to join his kids, Don, and David on the baseball field.

Polly scooted closer to Olivia, then, and said, "You have the most wonderful family, Olivia."

"Thank you," Olivia replied, "I really do, don't I?"

Polly laughed.

"Oh," Olivia said, smiling, "I didn't mean that to sound pretentious, it's just that…I've never had a real family before, and to me, they are the most amazing…"

"I know what you meant, Olivia," Polly said, smirking. "I never had a real family, either. Thank you for including me in yours."

Olivia tilted her head, shifted Josh to her other arm, and said, "Well, Don's a hug part of our family, so it's only right that…"

"No, see, you didn't have to open up the way you did. So easily. Don warned me that you were very standoffish, and had walls around you. He told me not to expect you to be so warm and welcoming, but you have been." Polly said, furrowing her brow. "I study human behavior, Olivia. I know when you're uncomfortable, and when you're lying, so I know this has been hard for you. Thank you for pushing passed it."

Olivia blinked. "You, uh, you're Don's fiancée. I can't…I have no right to shut down when it comes to his family. He's the only father I've ever known, really, so I have to ignore any personal fears or doubts. He's worth it."

"So, it seems, is Elliot," Polly said, looking out at the park where Lizzie had just hit a ball, and Elliot and Dickie were running around the bases.

"What do you mean?" Olivia asked, her heart giving a heavy thud. This is why she hated Dean Porter. He always knew what she was thinking and feeling without her saying it. With Elliot, there were still some things she could hide.

Polly gave Olivia a soft smile. "Those doubts you have, the fear in the back of your mind that this Hendrix woman is going to get what she wants…"

"Woah, what are you talking about?" Olivia interjected, not wanting to admit that she was afraid after all.

"Olivia," Polly sighed. "I saw the way you looked at her in the squadroom. I saw the fear hidden beneath the anger, and I heard the wavering in your voice when you made that threat against her. Trust me, Olivia, I can see it. I know, it's my job to know, that Elliot would never even think about another woman. You and his kids are his whole world. His body language, even when he's fifty feet away from you, says it all."

"Does it?" Olivia asked, with a quizzical look in her eyes.

Polly nodded and laughed. "Right now, for example, he's on third base, ready to run home, but look at him, Olivia. He's looking at you. His eyes are on you, aren't they? His left hip is jutted in your direction, a sign of sexual desire. His upper body is angled toward you, a sign of emotional attachment. He needs to run home, that's the thought in his conscious mind, but his subconscious is running home to you."

All Olivia could do in response was breathe and nod. She looked down at the sleeping baby in her arms, then looked up at third base, catching Elliot's eyes, and he smiled at her, his most amazing smile. He mouthed the words, "I love you," and she mouthed them right back to him. She looked at Polly and said, "Thank you for that."

"That is what family does," Polly said. "We tell each other the truth when we need to hear it the most." She pulled Olivia into a soft hug and said, "I'm going to be very proud to call you my step-daughter. Well, kind of." She and Olivia shared a laugh, then were joined by the men and children.

Elliot took his seat next to Olivia, pulling her into his arms and kissing her immediately. "We won," he said. "Ten to six."

"Only because you have longer legs," Kathleen said, "And Grandpa Don got tired."

"Grandpa Don is old," Cragen said, patting Kathleen on the head, with a breathless chuckle. Polly and David passed out plates and shared a smile. They really enjoyed spending the day with their new family.

* * *

They got home just after dark, walked into the house, and all of the children marched upstairs to get ready for bed. "That," Elliot said, kissing Olivia on the forehead, "Was one awesome Sunday."

"Yes, it was," Olivia replied nodding. She put Josh's carrier down and noticed some papers on the floor by the door. "El," she called. "What are they?"

"Huh?" he asked, turning. "Oh," he said, walking over. He bent over to pick them up and he gasped. "Um, they're pictures, baby."

"Pictures? Of what?" Olivia asked, walking over to him.

Elliot started chuckling as he flipped through them. "Us, Liv."

"Us?" she asked, folding her brow. "What are they doing on the floor?"

"Someone slipped them under the door, baby. They're not ours," Elliot said. "But, damn, am I glad we got them. We are hot!"

Olivia's eyes widened as Elliot showed her the picture and she smacked him in the head again. "How can you be so calm about this? Elliot, someone not only watched us having…" Elliot flipped the pictures and held out another one to her. "Damn, we do look really hot, don't we?" she said, forgetting her shock and anger for a minute.

"See?" Elliot said, chuckling.

Olivia shook her head. "Someone was watching and taking pictures, El. We are now victims of our own…"

"Liv, baby, you don't know who did this?" Elliot asked, still laughing to himself. "Look, there's pictures from today, too. Us at the park, kissing, cuddling. Look, I like this one. I wanna have this one blown up, we'll put it over the fireplace, huh?" he said, showing her a photo of them, smiling, foreheads touching, as they looked down at Josh.

Olivia smiled as her figers traced the edges of the photo. "It's a beautiful picture, honey, but someone's stalking…"

"Not stalking," Elliot said, holding up a finger. "Living vicariously. Stalkers, and you know this, baby, never let the person they're stalking know they're being stalked. Who do we know, honey, who wants our life? Who would have a reason to let us know that they've been watching? Who wants us to know that they can see us?"

Olivia smirked, remembering Polly's words. She knew that Elliot was laughing because he thought this person was pathetic and didn't stand a chance, and she was pretty certain Elliot knew exactly how to handle the situation. "Hendrix," Olivia said.

"Yeah," Elliot replied, nodding. He put the pictures in his pocket. Grabbed Josh's carrier and took Olivia's hand. "We are going upstairs, putting our son to bed, and, if she's still watching, giving the crazy doctor one hell of a show."

"El!" Olivia laughed.

Elliot chuckled. "Ya know, baby, it's a beautiful night. We should probably open up the bedroom window tonight; draw the curtains, let in some fresh air."

"Oh, my God," Olivia chuckled.

Elliot grinned. He and Olivia took their sleeping infant out of his carrier and settled him in his crib. Then, as they walked into their bedroom, Elliot stopped Olivia. "Liv," he said, turning her to face him, "Baby, you know I'm not encouraging her because I want…"

"I know," Olivia said, looking deeply into his eyes. "El, baby, I know. She wants to watch, let her watch. I've got nothing to worry about. You're mine," she said, pulling him toward her by his belt buckle. "All mine."

"You got that right," he said, kissing her as his hands found his way to her jeans.

Olivia moaned as his lips trailed down to her neck, and she turned her head slightly. "I thought you wanted the window open," she said, sighing as he pushed her onto the bed.

"No, baby. Not tonight. Tonight," he said, peeling the denim off of her legs and tossing it to the floor, "No one watches you cum but me." He looped his fingers through the silk of her panties, sliding them down. He licked her, deeply, just once, making her moan and he said, "And I'm gonna watch you cum a lot, baby. Over and over again," he said, licking her again. He pulled his tee shirt over his head, kicked his pants off and crawled over Olivia's body. "You're the only one, Liv. The only woman I ever want to watch, that I ever want to make love to," he whispered, pulling her tee shirt up over her head.

"I know, baby," Olivia whispered back. "Oh, God, I know."

As Elliot took off his wife's bra, sucked a nipple into his mouth, and pushed himself inside of her, someone, somewhere, was finally getting that very fact through their very thick head as well. They weren't happy about it, though, and they would definitely find a way to get their revenge.

**A/N: Who? Uh-oh? I love Polly…but should we really trust David? Next chap: A new case answers that question, and we see a bit of Alex/Munch and Casey/Fin drama! And, where do they choose to go for their anniversary?**


	44. Chapter 44

**A/N: How does the new case involve David? Think back! Who's pissed off about not being able to get into Stabler's pants? What's going on with the rest of the SVU crew? Read on!**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story.**

Munch peered at Olivia and Elliot as they walked into the squadroom. "Wow. You two look like you haven't slept in..."

"Four months?" Olivia finished, smirking as she cradled a sleeping Joshie.

Fin and Munch chuckled as Elliot snickered and kissed his wife. "Sure, Liv. Blame the baby," he whispered into her ear.

"Hey, if we keep going at it the way we have been, I'll be able to blame baby number two," she laughed back at him. "Sit down, Stabler," she commanded, winking. Elliot sat at his desk as he watched Olivia carry Josh upstairs.

Fin hung up the phone and said, "Hey, guys, we got a vic at Saint Vincent's. She claims she was raped, then stuffed into the trunk of a car. The man who attacked her said if she made any noise, he'd blow her up."

"What?" Munch asked, furrowing his brow.

"According to the doctor, she said there were bombs in the trunk," Fin said, getting out of his seat. "You want it?" he asked, looking at Elliot.

"Uh, yeah," Elliot said, as Olivia walked over to her desk. "Don't sit. We got a vic."

Olivia nodded. "Watch him?" she asked, looking at Fin and Munch.

"Duh," Munch teased. "I need all the practice I can get."

Olivia and Elliot laughed at him, then nodded at Cragen and walked out of the squadroom.

"Excuse me," Cragen said to Fin and Munch. "I'm gonna go play with my grandson. You two can handle things, right?"

Fin raised an eyebrow. "Uh, yeah. Sure," he said. "We can run the unit all by ourselves while you go play peek-a-boo."

"Good," Cragen said. "I'll be down in an hour."

Olivia and Elliot came back three hours later. Olivia looked homicidal, Elliot looked pissed off, and they both had files in their hands.

"Okay," Munch said. "I'm gonna be a dad soon, so if you need to kill anyone, kill Fin."

Fin made a face and gave Munch the finger.

"The girl was telling the truth," Olivia said, handing Fin a file. "Rape kit was positive. Melinda's running the DNA for us. And she remembered the license plate number of the car. It was a rental, but we found it. Explosives were still inside."

Elliot handed his file to Munch, anger in his eyes, and said, "O'Halloran told us that there was no way the bombs would have killed her if they'd gone off." he ran a hand down his face and sighed. "The charges were too small. They were fucking special effects."

Cragen, standing in his doorway, said, "Oh, no. Not again. Dave didn't do this."

Olivia turned to him, fire in her eyes, and said, "His prints were all over them, Captain." She shook her head and said, "I don't wanna believe it. I really don't. I'm hoping he just made them like he did for Simon, but we have to..."

"I know," Cragen said, "I know. I'll be watching."

"We know," Elliot said. "Cap, we love you, you know that, but if he..."

Cragen interrupted him. "Just do your jobs."

Alex walked in, with Casey right behind her, and they both looked frazzled. "Is it true?" Alex asked, looking at Olivia.

"What?" Munch asked, wide-eyed.

Olivia and Elliot sighed, looking at Munch and Fin. "Tell 'em," Olivia said.

Elliot cleared his throat and said, "The vic. The girl. She's Judge McCarthy's daughter."

Cragen's eyes narrowed. "Shit," he spat. "The brass is gonna fucking love this." He punched his office door open and slammed it shut behind him.

Olivia flinched at the noise, then turned to head up the stairs. "I need to check on the baby," she muttered.

The room watched her go, unsure of what was running through her mind. Elliot said nothing, he simply followed her.

Munch got out of his seat and pulled a stunned Alex into his arms. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Alex said, nodding. "How is Natalie?"

Fin, rising and walking over to Casey, said, "We don't know," he said. "Benson and Stabler talked to her." He kissed her cheek, brushed her hair back, and said, "I'll keep you posted, Case."

"Okay," Casey said, nodding. "We have to get back. The D.A wants someone's head for this, and she wants it now. I have their search warrant for the effects company and David's workshop, so tell them to step on it." She handed Fin a folded blue document.

"You know they will, Casey," Munch said. "This is high-profile and involves Cragen's kid, somehow. They'll be awake and in this room until it's solved."

Alex looked at Munch, ran her hand down his back, and said, "I need to talk to you, John," into his ear.

Munch looked at her, saw the look in her eyes, and took her into an interrogation room.

* * *

Olivia and Elliot went to search the workshop, Fin and Munch had brought David in for questioning, and they were all getting nowhere. David swore he'd made the explosives for a guy named Chance. They were props for his student film. David was claiming innocence, and was, at the moment, telling Fin and Munch everything he could about the guy and the job. The name didn't come up in any system, and no city university had any record of him in their film departments. Melinda called as soon as they let David go and told Fin that there no results found in the search for DNA matches. Munch called the rental car company, and the same kid, Chance Briderex, had rented the car for a few hours, paid in cash, and returned it without a scratch on it. This was not going well.

At the workshop, things were leading to just as much of a dead-end. "What the hell are we looking for, exactly?" Elliot asked.

"Nylon rope, duct tape, any receipts or transactions that have the name Chance Briderex on them," Olivia listed, flipping through a pile of credit card receipts.

Elliot scoffed. "Great," he said. "Oh, hey, how does Jamaica sound for our annivesary?"

"Queens?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, Liv," Elliot laughed. "The island."

"Oh. That sounds good, but I..." She stopped, looked up, and her eyes glazed over. Her pupils dilated. "Chance Briderex," she mumbled

"Liv," Elliot said, cautiously, "I know that look. Whatcha got, partner?"

"Gimme a pen," Olivia barked as she snapped her fingers.

Elliot pulled his pen out of his breast pocket and slapped it into her palm. "What is it, Liv? You figured something out."

Olivia flipped over one of the receipts and scribbled something quickly. She held it up and smirked. "This just keeps getting better," she said, handing him the slip of paper.

"Your IQ must be off the charts, Liv," Elliot said, his jaw dropping. "How the fuck did you figure this out?"

Olivia smirked. "I know the alphabet," she said. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Cragen's number. "Cap! Are Fin and Munch still with David? Call him, then. You need to ask him if he knows Rebecca Hendrix."

"Liv, baby," Elliot said, softly, "Tell him to send back-up and hang up the phone." He drew his gun and raised it, aiming at the door, watching the knob jiggle.

"Shit! Cap, send back-up," she spat, immediately. She snapped the phone shut and drew her gun, slowly moving to the side of the room opposite Elliot. The door swung open and Olivia yelled, "NYPD! Freeze!"

A tiny woman stood, wide-eyed, staring at them, holding a mop. "What did I do?" she asked with a heavy accent.

"Nothing, Ma'am," Elliot said, letting out a sigh. "Our mistake. Can you please wait until we're finished to..." he was interrupted when Olivia's phone rang.

Lowering her gun, she answered it. "Benson," she said, exhaling harshly. "No, no, false alarm. Cancel that. Now, this is interesting. Now, we're getting somewhere. Bring the good doctor in. I think Elliot and I can get her to talk," she said, snapping her phone shut again. "And we're gonna have a whole lot of fun doing it." She smirked as she looked at Elliot.

"Why do we need to talk to her?" Elliot asked, "And how the hell is it gonna be fun?"

Olivia chuckled. "We need to talk to her because she is David's business partner's sister. And she's also David's ex-girlfriend."

"She had access to order forms and knew how to get in and out of this place. Chance didn't exist. She had the bombs made for someone else," Elliot said, understanding.

Olivia nodded. "Wanna hear something crazy?" she asked, smirking slyly as she headed out of the workshop.

"What?" Elliot asked, following her.

"McCarthy was a police chief before he was a judge," Olivia said. "The chief who gave me my shield..."

"And refused to give Hendrix hers," Elliot said, finishing her thought. "This whole thing was about her getting revenge."

Olivia hummed in agreement. "And we are about to get ours, baby," she said, grinning smugly as they walked out to their car.

"It's official, Liv," Eliot said as he chuckled, watching her facial expression. "You really are a Stabler."

* * *

"I don't know what you're talking about," Hendrix said, smirking and eyeing Elliot. "Honestly, why would I set up someone to be raped, and give the rapist explosives?"

Olivia, sitting on the corner of the table, rolled her neck and unbuttoned the top two buttons on her shirt. "Is it hot in here?" she asked, furrowing her brow. "It's fucking hot in here," she said, tugging on the fabric. "You got the explosives from the same man who made the bombs that were planted in our car once upon a time. You were sending us a message, Becky. Telling us you've been watching us far longer than we thought."

Elliot moved closer to Olivia, narrowing his eyes at her, and walked around her, letting his hand graze over her hip and across her back. "The only thing hot in here is you, Liv," he said seductively. He stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

Olivia chuckled. "We are in the middle of an interrogation, El," she said flirtatiously. "Behave."

"Yeah, El," Hendrix said, clearing her throat, "Behave."

Elliot dropped his lips to Olivia's neck. "Tell her she's not allowed to call me 'El,' kitten," he said, trailing kisses across Olivia's collarbone.

Olivia looked at Hendrix, letting Elliot nip at her neck. "Um, he said you're not allowed to..."

"I heard him!" Hendrix yelled. "Why isn't he talking to me?"

"Tell her she's not allowed to ask questions, either," Elliot said, pulling the collar of Olivia's shirt down further, exposing more of her neck to him.

Olivia's eyes fluttered closed, then she cleared her throat and opened her eyes, looking at Hendrix. "Did you hear him?"

Hendrix nodded, in complete shock at what was going on right in front of her.

"Now, uh, you had McCarthy's daughter...oh, God, El," Olivia moaned, dropping her head back.

Elliot pushed her head back up roughly. "Interrogate the bitch, Liv," he said. He snaked his hands under her shirt, smoothing over her newly re-toned stomach, up over her breasts.

Olivia let out a soft gasp, then snapped back into action. "You had McCarthy's daughter attacked, in an act of revenge for him holding you back from getting your Detective's shield, right?"

Hendrix cleared her throat, unable to tear her eyes away from Elliot's hands and lips and what they were doing to Olivia. "Yes," she whispered.

"Ask her who did it, baby," Elliot commanded Olivia, still kissing her neck as he was sliding his hands over the black material of her pants, squeezing her legs, trailing his fingers along her inner thighs.

Olivia moaned softly. "Who was it, Rebecca?" Olivia asked. "Who did you hire? Who raped Natalie McCarthy?"

Hendrix couldn't breathe. This was too much for her. She was sweating. It really was hot in there, since Elliot and Olivia had turned up the heat in more ways than one. Hendrix saw Elliot's hand slide between Olivia's legs, and she saw his hand move and heard Olivia moan his name, and then she choked out an unintelligent noise, like a dying cricket.

"Tell her to answer the question, darling," Elliot said, moving his kisses from his neck to behind her ear.

Olivia moaned and suppressed a laugh. Even though this was a ploy to get a confession, he could have come up with something better than "darling." She leaned back into him, moving one of her own hands over his, making him groan. This was going to get very real if they didn't get a name, and the people behind the glass would soon be watching more than just a brilliantly played interrogation. "Answer the question, Doctor Hendrix," Olivia said, groaning.

"My..." Hendrix began, her own breath coming as raggedly as Olivia's.

"Tell her to say his fucking name, baby," Elliot barked at Olivia, moving his hand faster. "And I need you to say mine, Liv," he spat into her ear.

Olivia moaned, for real that time, and said, "Oh, God, Elliot! Doctor Hendrix we need a name, now."

"His...his name..." Hendrix panted, watching.

"Yes, Elliot," Olivia moaned. "Tell me his name, Rebecca."

Hendrix shot out of her chair and grabbed her head, squeezing her eyes shut. "My brother Phil!" she yelled. "Please, just...stop! I can't take it anymore!"

Elliot stood up, immediately stopping what he was doing, and straightened out his tie. Olivia rebuttoned her shirt and rolled her neck again. "Thanks, Becky," she said, cheerfully, hopping off the table.

"Wh...what?" Hendrix stammered. "You were just...you weren't really going to..."

Elliot chuckled, interrupting. "We're at work, Doc. That would be totally unprofessional." He leaned closer and whispered, "However, between you, me, and these four walls, that was all totally real."

Olivia leaned over and, looking menacingly into Hendrix's eyes, said, "Did it look different behind the lens of a camera? Much better in person wasn't it?" She turned on her heels and walked out of the interrogation room with Elliot right behind her.

"How was that?" Elliot asked, once he was in the pit.

Cragen looked at him, shook his head, and walked out, chuckling.

Fin looked over at Olivia and said, "Damn, Baby-Girl. I think we all need cold showers."

"Do I really want you two to be my kids Godparents?" Munch asked. "You're gonna be responsible for his moral and religious upbringing, I might be better off getting Alex's drunk sister and my ex-wife's new, poker-playing husband."

Olivia and Elliot looked at each other, and then at Munch. "What?" Elliot asked, smiling.

"Yeah, uh, while you guys were upstairs with Joshie, Alex and I talked about it and we decided we want you to be our daughter's Godparents, so, will you?" Munch asked, looking at his grinning friends.

"Answer him later," Cragen spat into the pit. "Someone needs to go pick up Phil Hendrix, one of you needs to bring Doctor Hendrix down to holding, and one of you needs to get our new psychiatrist set up in the computer system."

"What?" Olivia asked, furrowing her brow as she walked out into the squadroom. "We have a new psych consultant already?"

Cragen smirked. "She was kind of on standby," he said. "It's Polly."

**A/N: Ohh, revenge is sweet, no? Next chap: How will having a behavioral analyst in the unit go? What happens when Elliot's dad stops by? And Olivia and Elliot board the plane for Jamaica! **


	45. Chapter 45

**A/N: Behavioral Analysts need to learn when to keep their mouths shut. Ed Tucker stops by with a big surprise, and our two favorite detectives are off to Jamaica!**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story.**

"What you're looking at now," Polly said to Elliot as they leaned against the coffee table, "Is a woman who is totally and completely at ease. The way she's looking at the baby tells you that she loves him, and that smile, the gleam in her eyes, shows she's genuinely happy. The fact that her body is facing you, though she's completely engrossed in the child, means her subconscious is focused entirely on you. She loves you and wants you, very much."

"You're good at this," Elliot said, sipping his coffee.

Polly smirked. "Yes I am," she said. "You should hear what Munch's body language says about him."

"No, he shouldn't," Munch said, walking toward them with a narrow-eyed smirk. "Man, having you around, Polly, we're not able to keep any secrets from each other."

Polly laughed. "You aren't supposed to keep secrets from each other anyway," she said.

"Boy, am I glad you weren't around a year and a half ago," Elliot laughed. "You would have known about me and Liv the second...no, you would have known _before_ anything happened," he said with a chuckle. "I can't believe we've been married for a year already," he said, sighing. "Well, in a few days."

"Regretting it, yet?" Munch asked, slapping Elliot on the shoulder.

Olivia, with Josh in her arms, turned to them and said, "If you guys are trying to be quiet, you are failing. Miserably." She took the coffee from Elliot and handed him the baby. "Our flight leaves at five, El. We should go finish packing and spend some time with the kids," she said, sipping the coffee.

"I was drinking that, ya know," Elliot said, smirking, as he cradled his now-seven-month-old son in his arms.

"And now I am," Olivia quipped, raising the glass in a mock-toast, then downing the coffee.

Elliot chuckled then looked at Polly. "Okay, Doc. What's her body language saying now?"

Polly chuckled and said, "I believe, Elliot, it is saying that she has, what do call it? Owned you."

Olivia, Elliot, and Munch laughed, but were interrupted when Cragen and Fin walked in, with a perp in cuffs behind them. Cragen walked the man into an interrogation room as Fin walked over to the chatting group.

"Hey," Fin said, "Munch, we gotta talk to this guy."

Munch nodded, putting his coffee down, and walked over to his desk to grab a notebook. "Casey coming to watch?"

"Yeah, she'll be up in...now," Fin said, watching his wife walk through the bullpen doors. "Hey, Novak," he said with a wink.

Casey put her briefcase down on Fin's desk and headed for the coffee table. She poured herself a cup of milk and said, "Can we get this done, fast? Donnelly wants this guy arraigned in..." she paused, then looked at Polly. "Why are you staring at me?"

Polly tilted her head, looked into Casey's eyes, and said, "Congratulations."

Casey's eyes widened. "For what?" she asked, clearing her throat, putting the cup down and resting a hand on her hip.

"Oh, you haven't told him yet?" Polly asked.

Casey bit her lip and closed her eyes. "No, I haven't. How the hell did you even know?"

"Your eyes," Polly said. "And the way you're carrying yourself. The way you went for straight milk instead of coffee. Little things," she listed.

"Oh, my God," Fin said, his eyes widening. "You're gonna have a...I'm gonna be a...is this what you felt like, Stabler?"

Elliot chuckled as he looked down at Josh. "Man, I couldn't tell ya. I laughed, I cried, it's the best feeling, next to actually holding him in your arms."

Fin pulled Casey into his arms and said, "I'm really glad our new psych lady can't keep her mouth shut, but we are gonna talk about why you didn't tell me when we get home." He kissed her quickly, smiled at her as he brushed the hair out of his eyes, and then winked as he turned to follow Munch into the interrogation room. Elliot and Olivia gave Casey a congratulatory hug, then made their way upstairs to grab the baby's things. Casey walked, uncomfortably, into the pit, leaving Polly alone with her coffee.

* * *

"Hello, people of SVU," Ed Tucker yelled as he walked into the room. He looked around and raised an eyebrow when all he found was Polly. "Where are Detectives Benson and Stabler? Where's my grandson?"

Polly looked up at him, raised an eyebrow and said, "They're coming down in a minute. They're going home now. You're Elliot's father?"

"Yeah," Tucker said, realizing what he'd said. "Sorry, I didn't tell you that before, Doctor McGovern."

"You can use my married name," Polly said. "Unless having two Cragens around here will get confusing."

Elliot, coming down the stairs from the cribs, asked with a laugh, "Why do think everyone still calls Liv, 'Detective Benson'?"

"Because no one can get used to the fact that you actually suckered her into marrying you," Munch spat, coming out of the interrogation room.

"Shut up, Munch," Elliot chuckled. "What's up, Ed?" he asked, giving his father, whom he still couldn't bring himself to call 'dad', a brief hug.

Tucker hugged him back, then walked over to Olivia and the baby, cooing and making faces at Josh. "Well," he said, "I heard you two were taking a little anniversary vacation."

"Yeah," Olivia said, shifting the baby in her arms to allow Tucker to really play with him. "It was Elliot's idea, but I'm so ready to get on that beach and relax."

Tucker laughed as Josh squeezed his nose, and said, in a nasally voice, "I want you guys to go, and have fun, and take this," he said, holding out a black, plastic, card. "Everything you need while you're out there is on me."

"What?" Elliot said, looking at the credit card. "We can't..."

"Yes, you can," Tucker interrupted, smiling and rubbing his nose as he pulled back from the baby. Josh had one hell of a grip, thanks to his strong parents. "It's a family card, you and Olivia are authorized users, but think of it as my anniversary gift. You've made it through your first year as a married couple. It's special."

Olivia strapped Josh into his carrier and made a funny face at him, earning a bug giggle. She looked up at Ed and said, "Yeah. It is." She looked at Elliot and smiled.

"Thanks," Elliot said. "Thank you, very much," he added, still shocked.

"You two have fun, be safe," Tucker said.

Munch looked up and peered at them over his glasses. "Call when you land," he said, "And be prepared to listen to me bitch at you for leaving me alone in gloomy New York with Fin and two pregnant A.."

Elliot and Olivia laughed, said their goodbyes, and left, heading for what they hoped would be a week of nothing but romance.

* * *

"Calm down, baby," Elliot said, squeezing Olivia's hand. "We haven't even finsihed boarding yet, Liv. Breathe."

"El," Olivia said, looking at him with panicked eyes, "I hate flying, I hate that we left the kids, and I hate that we left Joshie. He hasn't been away from us for more than a few hours since he was born."

Elliot pressed his forehead to hers. "Baby, that's _why_ we need a vacation," he said, kissing the end of her nose. "The kids are going to be fine, babe. Alex is staying with them. Meaning Munch will be there, too, when he's not at work."

"I know," Olivia said, taking a breath. "I hate flying," she repeated.

Elliot chuckled and wrapped his arms around Olivia. "Honey, it's only, barely, a four hour flight. You can do this. You made it to Hawaii, and that was twice as long," he whispered to her. The plane began moving, Olivia squeezed her eyes shut and gripped Elliot's hand harder. "Liv, honey," Elliot whispered, brushing her hair back, "You're fine, baby. You've done this before. Just breathe."

"Well, if I remember correctly, and I do," Olivia said, raising an eyebrow, "We spent six of those nine hours to Hawaii in the bathroom."

Elliot laughed as he kissed his wife, pulling her close, deepening the kiss. "We can spend the entire flight in the bathroom this time, if you want, babe."

"You're a bad, bad man, Elliot Stabler," Olivia said, smirking as she kissed him, forgetting that the plane was in the air, forgetting her fear.

"Well, you make me wanna do bad, bad things, Olivia Stabler," he teased, grinning smugly at her as he skimmed his hands down her body. "This week, Liv, no kids, no inhibitions. I am gonna do things to you that you probably haven't even dreamed about."

Olivia scoffed. "Oh, honey," she said, "You have no idea what I've dreamed about where you're concerned. I could probably surprise the shit out of you, too." She bit his bottom lip, tugging a bit, making him growl.

"You are two seconds away from us not being able to make it to the bathroom, Liv," Elliot whispered.

Olivia looked him in the eyes, slightly narrowing them, and said, "One..."

"Don't you dare," Elliot warned with a chuckle. He turned to the aisle and grabbed the closest flight attendant. "We need a blanket and some pillows, please." He smiled at her and she walked away.

Olivia laughed. "That'll take longer than two seconds," she mumbled.

Elliot turned back to Olivia, pulled her toward him by her neck, and kissed her deeply. "We don't have to wait," he whispered in her ear, nibbling lightly on her earlobe.

"Um, Sir?" the flight attendant said, smiling, "Your pillows and blanket." She handed them to Elliot, smirked and shook her head, then walked away.

Elliot put a pillow on the back of Olivia's seat, the other behind his head, and wrapped the blanket over them. His hands immediately began to work their way into her fitted sweatpants, rubbing her over her panties as he kissed her. "Why do you even bother wearing these things anymore?" he asked, huskily, skimming his fingers along the edges of the silk.

"I know you love taking them off of me," she whispered, gasping as he worked a finger under the material, stroking the back of his finger over her warm, wet flesh.

Elliot chuckled. "Yeah, when I can," he said. "You are so wet, baby," he whispered. "I love it," he said as he kissed her.

Olivia, very silently, gasped as Elliot finger pushed into her, and she led her own hands to his pants. She stroked him lightly as he pushed another finger into her, making them both add more heat and force to their kiss. Lost in each other, covered by the warm, wool, blanket, their passionate, playful flight was only a taste of what was to come during the week ahead. They didn't know, though, that without them, things would fall apart back in New York.

**A/N: Uh-Oh! Happy, lovin' filled, vacation for them, but drama for...who? Wanna know? **


	46. Chapter 46

**A/N: Lovin' in Jamaica! And who's suffering without them? Only the entire unit...**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and its characters. TStabler© owns the narrative, dialogue and plot of this story.**

"This, what I'm looking at right now, has to be the most beautiful sight I have ever seen," Elliot said, digging his toes into the sand.

"You're looking at _me_," Olivia said, raising an eyebrow.

"I know," Elliot said, smirking, as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. The beach blanket was soft under them, their feet hung over just enough to sink into the white sand, and the weather was perfect. They'd spent the whole day on the beach, tanning and kissing and playing in the water, and they never let their thoughts drift away from the moment. They truly were in paradise.

"Happy Anniversary," Olivia whispered, kissing Elliot deeply.

"A very happy one," Elliot chuckled, running his hands down her bikini clad body. "A year, Liv. We've been married for a whole year," he said, kissing her neck. "And every time I kiss you, it feels like the first time. Every time I make love to you, it's like I've never touched you before. Every moment with you, baby, is sacred."

Olivia's breath hitched. His words still affected her, and she was on the verge of tears. "You weren't this cheesy when we met, were you?" she teased, kissing him.

Elliot laughed. "No, baby. You brought out the cheese when you kissed me. In the sink."

"I like cheese," Olivia quipped, giving him a smile that reached her ears and lit up her eyes. She kissed him, wrapping herself tightly around him, giving him the sweetest kiss possible as she pulled away.

"Marry me," Elliot whispered to her.

Olivia furrowed her brow. "Honey, I already did that," she chuckled.

"Do it again," Elliot said, looking into her eyes. He was serious.

"When?" Olivia asked, her breath catching in her throat at the emotion in his eyes.

"Tomorrow night," Eliot said, smiling. "Right here on the beach, Liv. I already have an island man who's willing to marry us."

Olivia smirked and shook her head. "You never cease to amaze me," she said, kissing him again. "But how did you know I'd say yes?"

"You're my best friend, Liv," Elliot said, tilting his head. "I know you." He pulled her close and breathed her in, sighing, as they watched the sunset over the water.

* * *

Cragen bolted into the noisy squadroom, picked up a phone, and said, "Call the two-nine!" He hung up with a huff. "Where are we on this?" he asked, pointing to the white board.

"Same place we've been all damn day," Fin said, picking up a ringing phone. "Nowhere!"

Munch sighed and answered the ringing phone next to him. "Hold on," he barked into the receiver. "Shouldn't we call Stabler? Both Stablers, actually. I mean this is their..."

"No," Cragen shouted. "Stay on it, and don't bother them. We do this without them, before they get back, and they do not find out about this until then, got it?"

Fin hung up his phone and looked over at Cragen. "That was Warner," he said, squeezing the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Blood on the carpet was Natalie's."

"Every time they go away," Munch said, shaking his head, "Someone close them up and dies."

"She ain't dead, Munch," Fin yelled. "She's just missing."

"Missing and bleeding, Fin," Munch yelled back. "This is Elliot's sister and we're just sitting here answering fucking phones!"

Cragen turned to them and yelled. "Knock it the hell off!" he barked. "I've got men on this from every possible department, and other precincts are working this. If she's breathing or not, we'll find her. We just don't know if she's the perp or the vic," he said, sighing.

"You really think she's capable of attacking someone?" Fin asked, scratching his head.

Cragen shrugged. "The first vic, the girl we actually found in the apartment, was raped with a foreign object. A woman could have done it, Fin."

"Grandpa Don?" a voice called from the doorway.

"Katie!" Cragen yelled, running over to the crying girl. "What's wrong? What happened? How did you get here?"

"I took a cab. Do you know where my parents are? I mean, can you get them on the phone or something?" Kathleen cried, panicking.

Cragen nodded. "Yeah, sweetheart, but you gotta tell me what happened."

"My Aunt Natalie called," Kathleen said, sniffling. "I answered the phone, so the others don't know, but she said that Mom and Dad...she told me they were killed. That their plane crashed and their in Hell where they belong. She called them professional sinners."

Cragen pulled the girl into a big hug. "Honey, your parents are fine. They called when they landed, and Maureen talked to them. She didn't tell you?"

"She did," Kathleen said, nodding, "I just...it scared me. Can we call them? Please? They're not answering their cell phones."

* * *

"Oh, God, Liv, baby," Elliot groaned as he ran his hands through Olivia's hair. "Holy shit, baby," he groaned. He looked down and met her eyes as she sucked him. "I love you, baby," he whispered, brushing her hair back again.

Olivia winked at him, and hummed around him, the vibrations making him even harder.

The phone on the end table interrupted this magic moment, and Elliot grunted. "Ah! Watch the teeth, honey," he spat reaching over to answer the phone.

Olivia let him go with a pop, chuckling. "The phone startled me, El. Sorry," she said, rolling her head back down.

"Hello?" he said into the phone, his other hand preventing Olivia from moving back down to finish her job. "Katie, honey, calm down. What happened? I'm fine, pumpkin! Yeah, Mommy's fine. She's right here." He handed Olivia the phone and sat up, concerned.

"Kat? Honey, I'm okay," Olivia said, furrowing her brow. "Yeah, we will, Katie. I promise. We love you, too, sweetie." She handed Elliot back the phone. "She hung up."

"That was weird," Elliot said, shaking his head. "Why wouldn't she tell us what happened? Something had her worked up," he said, looking back at his wife.

Olivia pressed her lips together. "I don't know, El. But it's okay now. She calmed down, and she was laughing when she hung up. She told us to have fun," she told him, shrugging.

"Maybe she just had a bad dream or something," Elliot said, nodding. "Now, uh, what were we doing before the phone rang?" he asked, smirking, running his fingers through Olivia's hair.

Olivia laughed as she kissed her way down his body, taking him into her mouth again, finishing what she started.

* * *

"Okay," Cragen said, holding up his hands, "So Munch is out tracking down Natalie Stabler, Fin is out looking for a twenty-one-year-old rape suspect, and you're telling me that we have another vic at Mercy?"

"That's what I'm telling you," Melinda said, nodding. "Olivia and Elliot picked the wrong time to go on vacation," she said, shaking her head.

Cragen sighed. "No, New York just picked the wrong time to fuck with me." He grabbed his coat and headed out.

"How are you?" Melinda asked, looking at Polly.

"Good, thanks," Polly said, typing on Munch's computer. "You should go. You're very busy, aren't you? And take something for that headache."

Melinda smiled and nodded. "Gotta love the BAU," she mumbled on her way out. Fin, coming in with a man in cuffs and three uniformed officers, almost knocked her over on his way. "Sorry, Mel!" he shouted over his shoulder. He threw the man into the interrogation room and asked one of the uniformed cops to stay with him.

"You guys are busy tonight," Polly said, shaking her head. "Your wife is here. She's in Don's office."

"Thanks," Fin said, opening the door to the captain's room. "Case?" he called, smiling when he saw her behind the desk.

"Fin!" Casey yelled, running to him. "Do you know how to get in touch with Oliv..."

"No," Fin interrupted. "They're on vacation in Jamaica, why?"

Casey ran a hand through her hair, sighing. "I need to talk to Olivia. She's the only one who I can talk to about this," she said, shaking her head.

"About what? Baby, you can talk to me," Fin said, pulling her close. "I'm right here."

"I'm scared, Fin," Casey said, clutching him tightly. "I'm scared to death of having this baby."

Fin's eyes widened as he held his sobbing wife. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, squeezing her tight. "Case, I'm scared, too. But we can do this," he promised. "Together."

* * *

"Do you have any idea how long I've wanted to do that?" Elliot asked, breathlessly, as he collapsed backward onto the bed, pulling Olivia down with him.

Olivia chuckled, trying to catch her own breath. "As long as I have," she said, running her hands up his body.

"That was fantastic," Elliot panted. "Abso-fucking-lutely fantastic. You are...flexible," he laughed. "How did I not know you could do that?"

"Well, you waited a fucking year to get experimental. We could have been having absolutely fantastic, flexible sex for a year and a half," Olivia said, biting into his chest.

"Hey, ow," Elliot said, chuckling. "I'm not a fucking chew toy!" he spat, laughing at her.

"Yeah, you are," Olivia said, nibbling at his nipple.

Elliot's eyes rolled back into his head, he moaned, then said, "Shit, baby. We aren't gonna get any sleep, are we?"

"Nope," Olivia said, sucking on the bead in her mouth.

"Oh, God, that's incredible," Elliot groaned.

Olivia chuckled as she nibbled, then bit her way up to Elliot's neck, looping herself around his waist. "Wait," she whispered into his ear, biting his ear lobe. "It's only gonna get more incredible."

"Oh, baby, I believe you," Elliot moaned, pushing up into her. He attached his lips firmly to hers, caressing and holding her every way he could. "Please," he whispered to her, "Don't hold back, Liv. The kids can't hear you, and I really don't care if anyone here does."

Olivia laughed, bucking her hips, making him moan. "I didn't hold back before, did I? And I don't plan on holding back now, El. As long as you don't." She rolled to the left and clenched around him, voluntarily, and he groaned even louder.

"Holy shit," he cried, looking into her eyes. "We need to make sure we get the kids out of the fucking house at least once a month."

Olivia chuckled, low and deep, as she leaned over, riding her husband and kissing him, deeply.

* * *

"Uh, hello?" a young man called into the empty squadroom.

Cragen came out of his office and looked at the man. "Hello. Can I help you?"

"Yeah," the baby-faced man said, "These are the results from the urinalysis on Grant Forrester, Sir. It was really very simple, fast test and fast results, ya know? Bing, bang, bong."

Cragen took the file from the kid and furrowed his brow. "Who are you and where's O'Halloran?"

"Oh, uh, O'Halloran's still in the lab, running blood sample comparisons," the kid said. "I'm Stuckey. Dale Stuckey."

**A/N: Uh-oh! Stuckey has arrived! What could he possibly do? What's up with Elliot's sister? Alex has her baby, and Olivia and Elliot come home with a big surprise! Want it? Review!**


	47. Chapter 47

**A/N: Alex has her baby, almost as soon as Olivia and Elliot's plane lands. They bring home a surprise! Stuckey's already getting on someone's nerves, and, could this be the end of "Unavoidable?" Only your reviews will tell!**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and related characters belong to Dick Wolf. Original characters, plot, narrative, and dialogue in this saga belong to TStabler©**

"What a week, huh?" Elliot asked, settling into his window-seat on the plane.

Olivia nodded with a warm, content smile. "It was wonderful. If it weren't for the kids, I wouldn't wanna go home."

"We could stay," Elliot offered. "A few more days, baby, won't hurt."

"No," Olivia said, shaking her head with a chuckle. "We can't take anymore time off and I think you miss the kids as much as I do."

Elliot sighed and nodded. "Damn responsibilities," he mumbled, kissing Olivia. "I can't wait to go home and play with my baby."

"See, you missed Joshie," Olivia said, nuzzling him.

"I was talking about you, but, yeah, Josh, too," Elliot said with a smirk, pressing his lips to hers again.

Olivia rolled her eyes and laughed. "Leave it to me to marry the most sex-crazed man in the world. You're like the fucking Energizer Bunny!"

"I never was," Elliot said, shrugging. "It's you, baby. You keep me going, and going, and going, and going, and…"

"Shut up, Stabler," Olivia barked, raising an eyebrow, leaning in to kiss him.

"Oh, we're back to this Stabler shit?" Elliot asked, playfully, against her lips. "Well, then, Benson, bring it on."

Olivia raised both eyebrows. "You did not just go there," she said, shocked with a smile.

"What are you gonna do about it?" Elliot asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

Olivia thought about pouncing on him, devouring him right there in the cabin of the plane, but she thought it would be more fun to drive him crazy. She smirked at him, leaned back in her chair, and said, "Nothing."

"Liv!" Elliot cried, having gotten himself all worked up. "That's just not cool, baby."

Olivia chuckled, trying to contain the desire to jump her husband. She sent him a sidelong glance and said, "Bathroom. Five minutes." She winked and got out of her seat, getting familiar butterflies in her stomach when she saw the look she was getting from Elliot.

* * *

"Lizzie," Alex called from the Stablers' kitchen, "Do you have any idea where your mother keeps the…oh, god!" She dropped the carton of milk, clutched her stomach, and yelled for anyone who could hear her to "Call John!"

"Aunt Alex!" Dickie yelled, running into the kitchen. "What's wrong?"

Alex, breathing quickly and making strange faces, simply pointed to her belly and nodded.

"Oh, wow," Dickie said. "I'm not old enough for this, um, Maureen!" he yelled, panic stricken.

Maureen ran in, her eyes widened, and she reached for the phone. "Grandpa Don? Mo, yeah, good. Fine. Um, Aunt Alex is…"

"Get my husband, Cragen!" Alex yelled, clutching the counter.

"Yeah," Maureen said, squeezing her eyes shut. "Okay, we will. I can do that! Yes. Bye!" She hung up the phone and grabbed her father's keys off of the hook. "Okay, Aunt Ally, I'm gonna drive you to the hospital. Uncle John is gonna meet us there as soon as Grandpa can get in touch with him. Everyone's on their way, okay?"

Alex nodded, still breathing and making faces. "Lamaze," she said, "Doesn't prepare you for this kind of pain!"

"Mom didn't take classes," Dickie said, looping an arm around Alex and helping her out to the car. "Dad taught her everything she needed to know about babies and the breathing."

"Well, kid," Alex said, hurling herself into the car, "Your mother is very lucky, and very smart, to have married a man who knows what he's doing!"

Maureen yelled into Kathleen and Lizzie to hurry up, honking the horn aggressively. Once everyone was buckled up, and Josh was safe in his carseat, Maureen looked down and panicked. "Um, you guys might want to pray, very hard, or something."

"Why, Mo?" Kathleen asked, her heart stopping.

"Dad's car's a stick shift," Maureen said, putting it into gear with a jerk and clumsily driving away.

* * *

Elliot knocked lightly on the bathroom door, knowing she wouldn't answer him. He looked around, slyly, and opened the door, smirking at Olivia as he found her leaning against the tiny room's wall. "Hey, baby," Elliot whispered to her, pulling her into his arms.

"Hey, handsome," Olivia whispered back.

Elliot pushed her away slightly, gazed into her eyes, looking at her with an intensity that took her breath away. "I love you," he whispered, pulling her back into a tight hug.

Olivia felt him tense up and she grew concerned. "El, honey," she said, muffled by his chest while wrapped in his embrace, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Liv," Elliot replied, rubbing his hands over her back. "I just wanna hold you, baby."

"El," Olivia said, knowingly, relaxing into his grip, "What's bothering you?"

Elliot sighed. "Are we ready for this? I mean, it seems so fast. I didn't want to rush you into this and Joshie…"

"El, of course I'm ready, baby," Olivia said, her eyes sparkling. "You're not rushing anything, and Josh will be a year and a half old by the time…"

"Really?" Elliot interrupted. "I saw the look when you gave me when you picked up that little plastic stick, and I remembered what you said in the doctor's office about wanting to wait, so…"

"Calm down," Olivia chuckled, brushing Elliot's hair back. "We didn't plan this. I knew, El. I knew the minute the words left my mouth that waiting, or trying to, was pointless. We're Catholic, you're the most fertile man in the universe, and we go at it like fucking rabbits! This was bound to happen."

Elliot laughed. "It was, wasn't it?" he asked, kissing Olivia. "At least we found out together this time, and we caught it from the beginning. You're only five weeks…"

"I know," Olivia said, smiling. She toyed with the drawstring on his sweats and pulled gently, untying it. "El, baby, are we gonna spend three hours in the bathroom talking? Or…"

"God," Elliot growled, reaching for her tee-shirt. "I love what pregnancy does to you," he chuckled evilly, tugging down her pants as she did the same to his.

"Makes me want you even more than I normally do," Olivia whispered, tugging his shirt out of his pants and raking her nails up his chest, under the cotton. "Thought it was impossible," she mumbled kissing his neck.

Elliot laughed as he hiked her up on the tiny counter. "I love you," he said, looking into her eyes as he entered her, slowly, savoring the moment.

"I love you, too, El," Olivia said through her clenched jaw. She scotted forward, wrapped her legs around his waist, and urged him to go deeper. "God, baby, I love feeling all of you inside me," she murmured, nuzzling his chin and neck.

"Good," Elliot said, "Because I love being inside you, Liv." He slowly moved, rocking into and out of her, trying to make a romp in an airplane bathroom into a romantic, passionate moment.

* * *

"Have you tried their cell phones? They should be on the ground by now!" Kathleen yelled, pacing in the waiting room.

"Yes, genius! That's the first thing I did," Maureen said, holding her head in her hands. "Daddy's gonna kill me. Mom's gonna help him!"

Lizzie wrapped an arm around her sister and said, "Look, you got us all her safely, and Aunt Alex made it here in time. She's fine, we're all fine. You didn't kill anyone."

"I killed the car!" Maureen cried. "I killed Dad's Escalade! I can't believe I drove into the wall!"

"It's just a car, pumpkin," Cragen said. "I'm sure he'll be more concerned that you didn't go down with it."

Dickie nodded. "And you didn't kill it, Mo. You just put in the ICU. It's on life-support. It needs a body-cast. It…"

"You're not helping, Dickface!" Maureen yelled.

Munch ran into the waiting room, in his scrubs, looking around. "They here yet?" he asked. "Alex needs Olivia, or someone equally able to understand the torture of childbirth, who can help her through this."

"No, man," Fin said, gripping Casey's hand. "Soon."

"It's a conspiracy, I tell you," Munch mumbled, walking back into the delivery room.

No sooner did he leave, did Elliot and Olivia run through the doors. "What happened?" Elliot yelled.

"Where are my kids? Is anyone hurt?" Olivia asked, panicked. "oh, God, guys, I missed you," she panted, as she pulled each kid into her arms.

"What happened?" Elliot repeated, looking down at Maureen who was crying in his arms. "Mo, honey, tell me what happened."

"I was in such a rush to get here, and get Alex in to see a doctor, that I forgot I had to switch gears and grab the clutch thingy before I braked to park, and I drove the car into the side of the building. The security guards told me that it was an accident, and they towed the car away."

"Well," Elliot said, brushing back his daughter's hair, "Did you do any damage to the building?"

Maureen sniffled and looked up at her father. "What?" she asked, stunned. "No. It's fine. Why?"

"And you are all okay, right? No one was hurt?" Elliot asked, a small smirk playing at his lips.

"Uh-uh," Maureen sniffled, shaking her head.

"Then we're okay, honey," Elliot said, holding her tight. "You're not in trouble. Calm down, Mo."

Kathleen pulled out of Olivia's hug and glared at her father. "Hey! You asked about the damage to the hospital before you asked about the damage to us?"

Elliot and Olivia looked at each other and laughed. "Sweetie," Olivia said, "Your father was trying to get Maureen to stop crying. Of course, he was only concerned about you guys. Where's the baby? Where's Joshie?"

Polly walked over and handed Josh to Olivia. "He was a very good boy," she said as she dropped the baby into Olivia's arms.

"There's my sweet angel!" Olivia cooed, smiling. "Mommy missed you, Joshie!" She looked into her son's cerulean eyes and smiled as he giggled and grinned at her.

Elliot walked over wrapping his arms around both of them. "Not to steal Alex's thunder, but you're gonna be a big brother soon, buddy," he said, tickling his son's belly, earning a squeal of delight.

"What?" Lizzie and Dickie cried together.

"You're gonna have another baby?" Kathleen asked, her eyes wide. "Man, you work fast!"

Casey, dropping Fin's hand, walked over to Olivia and pulled her into a hug. "I need to talk to you, as soon as possible," she whispered.

"Not before she gets in here and talks my wife out of ripping my head off!" Munch yelled from the doorway leaning into the delivery room. "Benson, she needs you. Please?"

"Uh, yeah," Olivia said, her eyes widening. She turned and gave Joshie to Elliot, then followed Munch into the hallway.

Cragen stepped up to Elliot and smiled. "Thank God you two are back. The place was a madhouse without you, and I almost killed the new techie."

"Sorry," Elliot laughed. "We'll try to coordinate our next vacation with a low crime week."

"How was the trip, man?" Fin asked, pulling Casey back into his arms.

Elliot smiled as he rocked his son. "Amazing," he said. "We spent a lot of time alone, just being with each other, ya know? We went a few times. We went scuba diving. We renewed our vows on the beach at sunset, we got the whole thing on tape. And, of course, we found out she was pregnant."

"Congratulations, Son," Cragen said, slapping Elliot on the shoulder. "Can never have too many kids, can you?"

"Not with Olivia, no," Elliot said, cradling his son.

"Uh, hello!" Maureen yelled. "I'm thrilled about the baby, Daddy, but what about me? Ground me! Yell at me! Do something, Daddy!"

Elliot snapped his head toward the girl, shocked. "Mo, baby, it was an accident, and no one got hurt. I'm not mad at you. I'm just thankful everyone is okay. If you had hurt someone, it would be different."

"Once upon a time, you'd be yelling at me…you'd probably arrest me!" Maureen said loudly.

Elliot sighed. "Mo, when I was with Kathy, I was under a lot of stress. I was thinking about Liv, all the time, which made me irritable when I had to go home. I wasn't happy, and a lot of the time, I took it out on you guys. When one of you did something wrong, I got mad on top of already being upset, which made me unbearable. Now, I'm a much calmer person. I'm happier. I know what's really important in my life, and Mo, honey, it is not the car."

Maureen smiled at her father, and wrapped her arms around him. "Thanks, Daddy."

"Don't thank me, kiddo," Elliot said, ruffling his daughter's hair. "Thank your mom. She's the one who calmed me down."

Fin chuckled. "I haven't seen you act any calmer," he said with a laugh. "In fact, I think you're more violent now. You're rubbing off on each other."

"I meant at home, Fin," Elliot said, rolling his eyes. "I'm storing up all the aggravation I would normal expel at home after work and using it at work the next day. Liv taught me how to compartmentalize."

"Yeah, I did," Olivia chuckled, coming out of the room in a set of blue scrubs. "Everybody in," she said, holding the door open. "Come meet Benjamin Elijah Munch," she said, looking at Elliot.

The group filed in and Elliot paused, letting everyone go by him as he looked his wife in her eyes. "Wait, baby," he said, holding her back from going into Alex's room. "Ben? Eli? They didn't do what I think they did, did they?"

Olivia nodded. "They named him after us," she whispered, kissing him. She led him into the delivery room. She grabbed his hand as she looked at Munch and Alex, peering down at their baby and whispered, "Eight months, El. Then we'll be back here, right where they are now."

"I can't wait, baby," Elliot said. He chuckled then, looking at her, and said, "We both knew it was unavoidable."

**A/N: Another baby? What made Alex and Munch name their baby after Olivia and Elliot? A backstory coming up, and we learn why Casey is so scared to have her baby. If you want to know, that is.**


	48. Chapter 48

**A/N: What happened to Natalie? Why did Alex and Munch name their son after Olivia and Elliot, kind of? And Olivia gives Casey a baby pep-talk.**

**DISCLAIMER: ****Dick Wolf owns SVU, and the characters. This story belongs to TStabler© **

"You're looking a little unstable," Tucker said, backing up. "That's, uh, I mean, you're name alone should..."

"You should have told me about this!" Elliot yelled, interrupting.

Cragen squeezed the bridge of his nose, trying not to yell back at him. "You had just gotten back, your kids were involved in a car accident, Alex was in the middle of having a baby. What would you have me do?"

Elliot yelled, his temper out of control. "I would have you fucking tell me that my goddamn sister has been kidnapped, and the fucker is forcing her to play mind games with my family!"

"Calm down!" Cragen barked.

"You fucking calm down!" Elliot yelled back. "Olivia had a panic attack when Natalie called this morning, saying something about running from the bastard and that he was coming after Josh!" He swung open the door and pointed, yelling, "Look at her! She hasn't put the baby down since three this morning and she won't eat!"

Cragen looked at Olivia, who looked pale and worn with worry as she stared back them, clutching her baby boy to her body. "I'm sorry about this, Elliot. We didn't know she'd been kidnapped until she called you," he said. "We believed she was the suspect!"

"You're kidding, Cap!" Elliot fumed. "She's as close to a nun as a woman could get without actually being one! She's a bit neurotic but she's not a rapist or a killer!"

"I know that now, Stabler!" Cragen yelled. "Fin and Paulson went to find her. When she gets here, she can will us who this guy is and we'll take him down. You know you're safe, right?" He rested his hand on Elliot's shoulder and squeezed. "Your family is safe here."

Elliot nodded. "They'd better be," he said, walking away from Cragen and going over to his wife and son. He pulled them both into his arms, and met Olivia's eyes. He kissed her sweetly, nuzzling her nose, and held her tight in the bullpen as the other four children sat in the upstairs lounge with their uncle Dave.

Olivia was shaking, slightly, as she tried to find solace in the arms of her husband. "El," she whispered, "Who do you think..."

"Shh," Elliot hushed, stroking her from her head to her back repeatedly, soothing her. Her shaking stopped. "I don't know, baby, it could be anyone we've put away who's holding a grudge. But we're safe," he assured her, kissing her.

"You're more than safe," Munch said, walking in with a Alex and a baby stroller in tow.

"You guys shouldn't be here," Olivia said, her heart swelling at the sight.

Alex scoffed. "Like heck we don't!" She said with a smirk, pushing and pulling Ben in his stroller.

"Heck?" Elliot snickered.

Alex looked at Munch, who rolled his eyes. "Alex doesn't think we should curse around the baby," Munch said.

Olivia chuckled, then said "Alex, you just got out of the hospital, you should be home, relaxing with..."

"How can I relax when some loon's just threatened the lives of the people who saved mine?" Alex asked, tilting her head. "Ben and I are gonna stay right here until he's caught and John's gonna help catch him."

Elliot sighed and gave Munch a grateful look. "You're amazing, man," he said, smiling. "Thank you for this."

"Hey, you're not allowed to work this case, neither is Olivia, and I would love nothing more than to personally ring this bastard's neck. After what you did for Alex..."

"That was different," Olivia said. "We didn't have a choice guys, the prick whipped a gun out in open court, shot the bailiff, and dragged her out."

"You did have a choice. You didn't have to run after me. There were fifty other cops out there," Alex said, proving her point. "Come on guys, let's go up to the lounge and..."

Before she could finish her sentence, all four kids and Dave ran out of the lounge and bolted down the stairs. "Mommy!" Lizzie cried, wrapping her arms around Olivia.

"What is it, honey?" Olivia asked, trying to keep hold of the baby as she clutched onto her stepdaughter.

"Uncle Fin just got off the phone with Polly," Kathleen said. "Aunt Natalie is taking him to the man who kidnapped her."

"Why didn't he call us?" Elliot asked, shocked.

Cragen came out of his office, making sure his gun was loaded. "He did," he said gruffly. "Munch, you with me?"

"Yeah," Munch said, kissing Alex and his son before following the captain and Ed Tucker out of the squadroom.

"Lizzie, honey, why are so upset? Everything's gonna be okay now," Elliot said, trying to console his daughter.

Dave, standing with the other kids, said, "She's relieved, Elliot. We all are."

* * *

As they waited anxiously for Fin and Munch, with Paulson from the two-six, to finish interrogating the man who'd kidnapped Natalie, Olivia and Elliot, along with their kids, rested in the cribs.

The children were all asleep, but Olivia and Elliot were wide awake, snuggling, kissing softly, enjoying the amazing feeling of relief that had washed over them when Natalie came in unharmed, but for the cut on her arm, and Fin and two officers brought in Sean Frampton, a recently paroled man who held a horrible grudge against Olivia and Elliot for putting him away.

Olivia moaned ever-so-softly as Elliot fisted her hair and deepened the kiss, running his other hand down her body. They were virtually noiseless as they kissed and caressed, but she needed to stop, she needed to breathe, she pulled away. "Baby," she whispered. "We have to stop. You know how I am, and what I want to do with you, but I can't. Not with our kids in the room."

"Just kiss me, Liv," Elliot whispered, capturing her lips. "I want you, too, baby, but exercising a bit of self control will do us both some good," he said softly with a light chuckle. "I just need to be with you," he breathed, kissing her once again. "I love kissing you," he whispered against her lips.

Olivia smiled, wrapping her body around his, kissing him back softly, contentedly, until a soft knock on the door interrupted them.

They popped their heads up and looked annoyingly at the door as it opened, revealing Casey, near tears. "Olivia?" she asked, almost shyly. "I know you have had one hell of a day, but can I talk to you?"

Olivia looked down at Elliot, who nodded and rolled his eyes. She kissed him quickly and got up, following Casey out into the lounge. "Case, what's up? You've been acting kind of funny since..."

"I don't know what to do," Casey said, plopping onto the couch and dropping her head into her hands. "We never discussed kids, he has his hands full with his son, and I...I have no business being a mother, Olivia. My maternal instincts are shit, I have no tolerance for drooling, crying, dirty diapers," she listed.

"You sound like me," Olivia said, smirking.

"Oh, please," Casey said. "You've always wanted to be a mother.

Olivia sat next to her friend and said, "Correction. I have always wanted to be a mother to Elliot's kids. I wanted it, when I knew full well it would never happen." She rolled her eyes and leaned back into her seat, grabbing Casey's hand. "Case, I had myself convinced that the only way I could ever be a mother, ever, is if Elliot was the father, and since it wasn't a possibility, I was safe."

Casey narrowed her eyes. "You're saying, you were scared?"

"Petrified," Olivia laughed. "You're forgetting that I didn't have the world's best mother, Case. I thought I would automatically be horrible. But three years of being with Elliot's kids, watching them grow, practically raising them with him because Kathy was insufferable, made me realize I could do it, but I only wanted to do it with _him_. When it all actually happened, I felt...the only word is blessed, Casey. Truly blessed."

Casey sighed. "So you married Prince Charming and have a castle full of kids. This isn't helping, Olivia."

Olivia laughed. "Would it help if I told you I was _still_ scared out of my damned mind, even though I _was_ having Elliot's baby? Case, I had nightmares about doing stupid shit like leaving the baby in a shopping cart, or not changing the poor thing's diaper unless it _asked_ me to. When we found out it was a boy, I had nightmares of forgetting he was a boy and dressing him up in pink, frilly dresses. He was seven years old in these dreams," she chuckled. She turned to look at Casey and said, "But, having Elliot beside me eased the fear. Close your eyes, Case. You're alone, in a white room, and your eight and a half months pregnant. Who is the only person who you can envision being next to you, holding your hand, being a part of that?"

With her eyes closed, her hand still clutching Olivia's, Casey smiled softly as she said, "Fin." She opened her eyes and said, "It's Fin. Do you really think I can..."

"I did it," Olivia offered. "And I'm doing it again, so if I, me, who had no parental examples at all, can raise six amazing kids, then you, who practically had June and Ward Cleaver as parents, should have no problem."

Casey sighed and pulled Olivia into a hug. "Thank you," she said. "You're full of shit, and you know it, but thank you."

Olivia laughed. "Casey, everything I've said was one-hundred-and-ninety percent true!"

"Really?" Elliot asked, standing in the doorway.

Olivia turned, slightly embarrassed, and said, "Yes. How long have you been there?"

"Long enough to find out you've wanted to have my baby for three years before you actually had him," Elliot said, smugly. "To which I can only say...ditto. I wanted to knock you up in the worst way, from the moment we met." He sat on the other side of Olivia, wrapping an arm around her. "I think that's why I did it twice in two years. I'm trying to make up for lost time," he laughed. "They're booking Frampton, the schmuck. Case, you need to schedule his arraignment. We can all breathe a little easier," he said, kissing his wife on the lips. "The really important thing, though, is you, Casey. You feeling better about everything?"

"Yeah," Casey said, nodding. "I'm gonna go downstairs, get Fin, stop at the clerk's office to put Frampton on the calendar, and go home. Fin wants to start picking out names, and I'm finally ready to help him do it."

Olivia and Elliot watched her leave, then looked at each other. "You told her you had nightmares about dressing my son in pink frilly things?" Elliot asked, smirking as he kissed her again.

Olivia laughed and nodded. "At least I didn't tell her about the time I dreamed Josh was born with four heads and six arms," she said, widening her eyes and shaking her head.

Elliot snickered. "You also neglected to tell her that you lived off of hot peppers and tropical fruit, which gave you those stupid-ass dreams. You weren't _that_ scared of..."

Olivia cut him off with a kiss, wrapping her arms around him. "I did a good thing here, tonight, baby. Let the woman think I was just as afraid as she was. It did the job, didn't it?"

"I love you, baby," Elliot said, smiling as he kissed his wife.

"I love you, too, El," Olivia replied, pulling him down on top of her as she flattened out on the couch.

They heard a throat clear, and a very young-looking man stepped into the lounge. "Sorry for interrupting," he said. "And it does look like I interrupted something. You two are needed down in the lab. We got some new evidence for ya on the Brinkley case."

"You must be Stuckey," Olivia said, pulling herself off of Elliot and trying to smile.

"That's me," the techie said. "Dale Stuckey, technician-at-large. Guaranteed to get the job done, done right, and done right the first time. Bing, bang, bong!"

Elliot chuckled and looked back at Olivia as they got off the couch. "Is this kid for real?" he asked in a whisper.

"Guess we'll see soon enough," Olivia said.

As they followed Stuckey out of the lounge and down the stairs, certain that their kids were safe with Dave and Polly, Elliot leaned over and whispered, "And what the hell does 'bing, bang, bong' mean?"

"No fucking clue, El," Olivia whispered back, taking his hand as they traveled down to the lab. But, they were definitely about to find out.

**A/N: Oh, dear. A case with Stuckey? This can only be bad. Stay tuned for the case, Stuckey's secret, and Joshie's first birthday!**


	49. Chapter 49

**A/N: A case with Stuckey gets sticky and reveals some secrets. (And next chap is NUMBER 50!! Leave me some lines you'd like characters to say in your review, and in honor of my 50th chapter, I'll use them!)**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks.**

"So," Elliot said, trying to make small talk as he and Olivia followed Dale Stuckey out of the back door of the squadroom, "How old are you?"

"Twenty-three," Stuckey replied with a broad grin. "You have no idea how excited I am to be going out on this call with you guys. You're my idols. Well, Gill Grissom is my idol, but he's a fictional character from a prime-time TV show. You guys are my real, in-the-flesh, human idols."

Olivia, unaware of what she was saying, spoke as she walked. "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heavens above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love and forgiveness to a thousand of those who love me and keep my commandments."

Elliot, stunned, stopped in his tracks and turned to her. "What did you just say?"

"I'm not really sure," Olivia admitted.

"Did you just...quote the Bible?" Elliot asked, a smirk being born to his lips.

Olivia blinked. "Uh, yeah," she said, as if just realizing it herself. "I did."

"What book, baby?" Elliot asked, taking her hand as they walked. His heart grew three sizes, and the new space was filled with nothing but love for this woman who had just proved to him and herself that she, while not necessarily believing in God, had a place for religion in her mind, and her heart, out of her love and respect for him.

"Don't push it, El," Olivia said with a smirk. She took a few more steps, hearing him chuckle, then leaned into him and whispered, "Exodus."

Eliot laughed, a good, warm, laugh, and kissed her on the forehead, letting her out of his grasp just as they left the alley, and walked toward their car.

* * *

"Listen, Kid," Eliot said to Stuckey as he held his gun in front of him with a flashlight, "I'm not questioning your ability here, but do you think, possibly, you got the wrong address off of that note? It was covered in blood in the guys pocket."

"No, sir," Stuckey replied, clutching onto Olivia like a scared child. "This is the address. We just, uh, should keep looking."

Olivia looked down at him. "Okay, first, I'm going to ask, very nicely, if you will please let go of my hand," she declared. When Stuckey let go and cleared his throat, she shook her head and continued. "Next, I have a question. How did you get the address off of the paper?"

"Simple," Stuckey said with a smile. "Unfolded it carefully with tweezers, let it dry, bleached it. Bing, bang, bong."

Elliot groaned. "Kid, bleach lightened the blood but it also dissolved the ink! You have to flatten the thing out on one of those light-defragmenting-things, shoot a laser through it at a frequency that causes cancer in Nicaraguan Monkeys, and then you can read it without damaging it."

"Bing, bang, bong," Olivia said, mockingly.

Stuckey's face fell. "Oh, wow, I...then maybe we're...wow."

"We spent an hour searching a building for a victim that doesn't exist," Elliot said.

"Gosh, I'm sorry, I..." Stuckey began, but faltered as he tripped over something on the floor. They heard a clash and a clink, and Elliot turned quickly aiming his flashlight at the source of the noise.

"Stuckey," Olivia said, gritting her teeth, "You tripped over the brick that was keeping the door open, didn't you?"

Stuckey hummed, choking a bit, and nodded.

"Great!" Elliot said, sarcastically. He ran over to the large metal, rusted, gateway, but it wouldn't budge. "Perfect," he muttered. He whipped out his cell phone and called Cragen, while Olivia slid, frustrated, to the floor.

"I'm sorry, Liv," Stuckey said, sitting next to her.

"You don't get to call me that," Olivia said, glaring a bit harshly at him. "No one does," she added.

Stuckey smirked. "Elliot does," he said, jerking his head toward the gruff detective who was now yelling obscenities into his phone.

"Yeah," Olivia said. "My husband is the only one who calls me that," she proclaimed, smiling at the memory of how she got her nickname.

"Husband?" Stuckey asked, genuinely surprised. "You're married? Is that allowed?"

Olivia shrugged. "We didn't really care if it was or not, but thankfully we're making it work." Elliot snapped his phone shut and sat down on the other side of his wife with a heavy sigh. "What'd he say?" Olivia asked, running her hand through his hair.

"They got the real address, when O'Halloran used the laser," Elliot informed them, glaring at Stuckey, "And they're all out in Queens getting the body. We're gonna be here for a while."

"Wonderful," Olivia breathed, her head dropping to Elliot's shoulder.

"Hey, uh, since this was my fault, can I make it up to you?" Stuckey asked, giving them his big, childish smile.

"How?" Elliot asked. "How can you possibly make this up to us, Kid?"

Stuckey frowned at Elliot's insistent use of the name, "Kid," but kept talking. "I can keep us occupied. I guarantee I get you to tell each other things you never knew before," he offered with a wink. "See, my mom was a therapist. I know a few tricks. It'll bring you closer."

Elliot sighed. "Three hours in the Bronx, I'm cold, hungry, tired, and now I'm playing Twenty Questions with a rookie and my wife. Yeah, today blows."

"Sour puss," Olivia chided, looking up at him.

"Ask your first question, Kid," Elliot said, kissing Olivia on the head.

Stuckey smirked. "When was your first kiss?" he asked.

"In the sink," Olivia and Elliot answered together with a laugh.

"No," Stuckey said, confused, "You're individual first kisses. The point of this is to learn things you never knew about each other!"

Olivia cocked an eyebrow. "Uh, he knows that," she said. "And I know his. We were partners, best friends, before we got married. I'm pretty sure there aren't any secrets between us. Try again."

"Most embarrassing moment," Stuckey said, turning his body so he could see both of them.

Olivia chuckled. "Getting stuck in my kitchen sink," she said, squeezing Elliot's arm. "No, uh, I yelled out the wrong name in bed once."

"No, you didn't," Elliot said, furrowing his brow.

"I wasn't in bed with you, El," Olivia said, snickering. "But, uh, it was your name, so..."

"When was this?" Elliot asked, amused. "Who was this? I mean, I know you compared all your dates to me, but actually wishing they were me?"

Olivia looked up at him, squeezing his arm tight. "Our first year as partners, right after the Connor case. Guy named Jake. He hates his life, now."

"Wow," Stuckey chuckled. "Elliot?"

"Um, okay," Elliot began, pulling his arm out of Olivia's clutches to wrap it around her. He pulled her close and said, "I was pretty high ranking in the academy, ya know, being a Marine and all. I was the unit contender in the monthly trials, and I always had the fastest time in my squad, so I got to go the city trials, a couple of times. The day of the city trials, once, I got distracted by this hot rookie from a different district who had just flown passed me, and I fumbled jumping over a hurdle. I landed face first in the mud, my whole squad laughed at me, and to top it off, the fastest time that month went to that girl."

Olivia laughed. "Oh, my God! I'm so sorry!"

"Don't be," Elliot said. "I never would have lost my focus if I hadn't been staring at your ass. I trailed behind you, purposely, after I fell, just so I could keep looking at it."

Olivia chuckled and tilted her head to kiss him.

Stuckey laughed and said, "So you guys knew each other in the academy."

"No," Elliot said, rolling his eyes. "I wish we did, but no. Just had that one moment, from afar. I didn't even introduce myself to her."

Olivia chuckled. "You couldn't," she said. "You had a mouthful of mud."

"Smart ass," Elliot spat, snickering.

"Yep," Olivia replied, smirking.

Stuckey laughed again, sounding very excited, like a young boy who had just been accepted into the cool kids group at school. "Awesome," he said, shaking his head. "Okay, what's your worst fear?"

"Like…something we're afraid of, an actual thing?" Olivia asked, not really willing to give up her true deepest fear to this…rookie.

"The thing, event, memory, thought, whatever, that scares you the most," Stuckey clarified.

Olivia cleared her throat. "Could we not do this?" she asked. "I'd really rather just…"

"Answer the question!" Stuckey yelled.

"Wow," Elliot spat. "Hold on, man. She doesn't have to do anything! Neither of us do! You need to calm down, Kid," he said, getting angry.

Stuckey chuckled as he rose to his feet. "You really need to stop calling me that."

"What?" Elliot asked.

"Kid," Stuckey said, as he grabbed Olivia and ripped her away from Elliot. Elliot got to his feet, but Stuckey pulled Olivia's gun out of her holster and aimed it at her head. "Don't do anything hasty, El," he said to Elliot, who had been reaching for his own gun.

Elliot slowly reached for his gun anyway, aiming it easily at Stuckey. He gulped and tried not to make eye contact with Olivia. "Don't hurt her, Dale," he warned. "You really don't wanna do that, man."

Stuckey shrugged. "Actually, I do." He cocked the trigger and pressed the gun into Olivia's temple. "This is it, right, _El_? Your biggest, deepest, darkest, fear? Something terrible happening to her, your precious _Liv,_ while you watch and can do nothing to stop it?"

"Yeah," Elliot whispered, "It is." He finally took a breath and looked into Olivia's eyes, seeing no trace of panic. Instead, he saw a flicker of amusement and a fierce glare, one that he interpreted as a challenge. God bless her for being the bravest woman in the world, he thought. "You're forgetting one thing, Dale," Elliot told him.

"Yeah? What's that?" Stuckey asked, chuckling.

"We've done this before," Elliot said. As soon as the words left his mouth, Olivia elbowed Stuckey in the ribs, brought her fist up to meet his jaw, and grabbed his arm, pulling it behind him. She grabbed her gun back from him and aimed it at Stuckey, who was now crumpled on the floor.

Elliot chuckled. "Remind me never to hold you at gunpoint," he quipped, bending down to cuff Stuckey. He rolled the rookie over and heard a whining, whimpering, groan.

"Was just…kidding," Stuckey mumbled. "Making you closer, getting you to admit your fear," he garbled as he lolled his head back and forth.

Olivia holstered her gun, and knelt beside him. "We already knew each other's deepest, biggest fears. And we both knew how to face it," she said. "We don't have any secrets, Stuckey. Not from each other."

Elliot pulled Stuckey up but the cuffs and he and Olivia watched him shake his head and stumble a bit, still woozy.

"Yeah," Stuckey nodded. "You do," he said. "At least, Elliot's been keeping something from you," he smirked and teased, waggling his eyebrows. Then, he grinned evilly as he called her, "_Liv_."

Olivia turned to Elliot, a questioning expression on her face. "What?" she asked.

Elliot looked just as confused as she did. "I swear to God, Liv, I've told you everything there could possibly…"

"Tell her about it, Elliot!" Stuckey yelled, viciously. "Show her! She deserves to know!"

Olivia visibly paled, she took a step backward. "Tell me about what, El? Why would this kid know something about you that I don't?"

"He doesn't, Liv!" Elliot shouted, panicking. "I swear, on the life of our child, that I have no fucking idea what he's talking about."

Olivia relaxed slightly, knowing he would never do that if he was lying. "Then why would he…"

Stuckey interrupted her, laughing hysterically. "You should have seen the look on your face, Liv. You looked like you were gonna cry!"

"What the fuck?" Elliot spat.

"I figured, Elliot, since you had to deal with your fear," Stuckey chuckled, "Olivia should deal with hers."

Before either Olivia or Elliot could say anything, they heard a pounding and scuffling outside the metal door. Munch and Fin burst through it, three uniformed officers following them, their eyes widening when they saw Stuckey in cuffs. "Do I wanna know?" Fin asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Tell ya later," Elliot said. "Just read him his rights. Unlawful imprisonment and assaulting an officer."

"Come on," Stuckey cried. "I was just messing around! Liv? El! I was kidding! Guys? Guys!"

Elliot shook his head as he watched Fin drag Stuckey away and they all filed out. He sighed, and he grabbed Olivia's arm, turning her to face him. "You're afraid of, what, exactly? That I'm going to leave? Hurt you? Lie to you?"

Olivia grimaced. "Saying it out loud, El, it sounds so ridiculous. But a part of me, I guess, will always be afraid of that…"

"Never," Elliot said, kissing her, "Gonna," he continued with another kiss, "Happen."

"I believe you," Olivia said, kissing him one last time before letting him take her out of the room. "It's a completely irrational fear. However, I can't believe we wasted all this time with Stuckey, who turned out to be a sociopath, and you know Cragen's probably gonna blame us for this."

"No, baby," Elliot said, smirking. "We just tell him that we got the address, followed the techie, got locked in a room and held at gun point, beat the shit out of him. Bing, bang, bong."

Olivia turned, looking into her husband's eyes. "Please," she said, "Never say that again."

Elliot laughed, kissed her, and took her hand. It had been a long couple of days, and they were very, very glad that it was Saturday. Elliot smirked as they finally hit fresh air. He had plans for his wife when they got home, that would make her forget the hell they'd been through, forget her fear, and, hopefully, forget her own name.

**A/N: You all know what Saturday night means? ;) Next chap, some alone 'grown-up' time, and family Sunday! You will all witness Munch's parenting skills. And next chap is NUMBER 50!! Leave me some lines you'd like characters to say in your review, and in honor of my 50th chapter, I'll use them!**


	50. Chapter 50

**A/N: CHAPTER 50!! Thanks so much for sticking with me!! Look for your lines! If you left one, I tried to make it fit! They were soooo random!!! Happy Family Sunday!**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks.**

"Liv, baby," Elliot said, watching his wife struggle with pink and white balloons, "They look fine. Stop."

Olivia sighed and turned the bunch one more time, crooking her eyebrow. "I want everything to be perfect. She's our daughter, and she's only going to turn fifteen once!"

Elliot chuckled. "Yeah, and she chose to spend it at home with her family, baby. She doesn't even want the decorations or the presents."

"I can't help it, El," Olivia said with a smile. "I want to make it special for her."

"It will be," Elliot told her. "Then she and her brothers and sisters are going to the movies with their grandparents to give us some Mommy and Daddy time." He wrapped his arms around her, running his hands down and resting them on her two-month-baby-belly.

Olivia hummed in contentment as her eyes closed. "Sounds perfect," she whispered. "I love Mommy and Daddy time, El."

Elliot let out a low moan and pulled her tighter. "You have your bedroom voice on, Liv. Turn it off. We're gonna have company soon."

Olivia chuckled, turned around in his arms, and kissed him. They were still kissing when the four oldest Stabler kids paraded down the stairs.

"Hey!" Dickie yelled, "Just because it's Maureen's birthday, you don't need to show her how she got here!"

Olivia and Elliot broke apart, laughing. "Watch it, Mister," Elliot scolded, pointing at his eleven-going-on-twelve year old son.

"You two are always kissing, or hugging, or cuddling, or looking at each other," Dickie said, making a face. "It's not normal!"

Olivia smirked. "We have chemistry," she said. "We can't help it."

"Yeah, Dickface," Kathleen said, grinning. "They're in love. You should be used to this by now."

"I am," Dickie said with a sigh. "That's what's not normal. What twelve year old boy is used to catching his parents making out?"

The family laughed as the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," cried Lizzie, running to the door. She swung it open and smiled as her Grandpa Don, Grandma Polly and Uncle Dave came in with armfuls of presents. They gave each child, and Olivia and Elliot, a hug and kiss on the cheek, and Polly immediately walked over to the playpen and scooped up the eight-month old boy.

"He's getting so big," Polly said, bouncing a giggling Josh around in her arms.

"Yes, he is," Olivia said, with a sad smile. "Too big, too fast."

Elliot, his hands still around her belly, said, "We're not gonna have a break, though. He'll barely be walking when this little one arrives."

Cragen looked at them, raising an eyebrow, and said, "I suppose you'll be wanting the whole five months off with her, again, Elliot."

Elliot nodded with a scrunched up face, as if saying, "No, duh, Cap."

Olivia rolled her eyes and chuckled.

"Liv, I made the mistake of working through that precious time with my first four," Elliot whispered to her. "I was here for you with Josh, and I'm gonna be here for you when this one gets here. I wanna be."

"I know you do," Olivia said, looking softly into his eyes. "I want you to be here, too, baby."

"He will be," Cragen said with a small smirk. "Tucker already has eight detectives lined up to fill in for you. You'll be leaving, together, as soon as Olivia hits her seventh month."

The doorbell rang again as Olivia and Elliot thanked Cragen. Kathleen walked to the door and opened it, welcoming in Alex, Munch, and baby Benjamin. "Hey, Stablers!" Alex yelled happily.

"Hey, Munches!" Elliot quipped back.

Munch looked up at him, tilted his head, and said, "That is…you and Olivia match." Then he looked around and his eyes widened. "Your whole family matches! You coordinated your outfits?"

Dickie walked over next to his father, proudly. Elliot rested a hand on his son's shoulder and said, "Well, Munch, only real men wear pink."

"It's Maureen's favorite color," Olivia said with a chuckle as she smoothed her pink dress down.

Maureen nodded brightly. "We have pink plates and cups, and pink plastic knives and forks, and pink napkins, and my cake is pink!"

"How did you know what your cake…Liv?" Elliot accused, glancing toward his wife.

"Don't look at me!" Olivia barked, taking her son from Polly.

Maureen laughed. "I saw it, Dad. It's kinda hard to miss!"

A few minutes later, Ed Tucker and his wife showed up, as did Casey and Fin, and a few of Maureen's friends. They all dropped off their gifts in the den and then headed outside to the deck, where Fin and Elliot lit up the grill. "Okay, who wants cheese on their buger?" Elliot yelled.

Several hands shot into the air, and Elliot hummed. "I'm making 'em all fucking cheeseburgers then," he mumbled, slapping yellow slices over the grilling beef patties. A few moments later, and people were happily munching on some of the best burgers they'd ever had.

"Elliot, man," Fin asked, holding his beer, "I gotta ask, what's sex with Olivia like?"

Elliot's head shot up and he furrowed his brow. "What?" he asked, turning over some hot dogs.

"I mean," Fin said, sipping his beer, "She's always been adventurous. Mountain climbing, hang-gliding, skydiving. Does that, uh, carry over into the bedroom?"

"What?" Elliot asked, dryly. His eyes were narrowing.

Fin rolled his eyes. "Stabler, man, we're guys. I'm askin' ya if you and Baby-Girl have ever, like, hung upside down, done it backwards on one foot, doggie-style! Why have we never talked about this?"

"Because it's none of your business," Elliot spat in a harsh whisper. "And it'll never be any of your business, so butt out!"

Fin's eyes widened. "I was just…"

"Ya know," Elliot interrupted, "We do things that would make your fucking head spin, if you really wanna know, but I love her, and I respect her too fucking much to talk about it. That's private. Man, that is me, and that is her, and that is it. And I'm certainly not gonna talk about it at my daughter's birthday party!"

"Talk about what?" Olivia asked, coming up behind them.

"Nothing, baby," Elliot answered too soon, looking at her. "Oh, God, baby! You're bleeding! How the fuck did that happen?" He pulled her hand toward him and sucked at the cut on her wrist, then made an odd face.

Olivia, laughing, but touched by his concern, said, "El, baby, that's ketchup."

"Yeah," Elliot said, still suckling on her wrist, savoring the taste, not of the ketchup, but of Olivia. "I figured that out."

Olivia moaned, lightly, getting intensely aroused at the feeling of her husband biting and sucking her pulse point. Her hormones were raging, and she was in desperate need of a good romp with him, now, and couldn't have one. "El, baby, you need to stop that," she whispered, pulling her hand away.

Elliot shook his head, and kissed his way up her arm, over her shoulder, reaching her neck. He sucked just a bit, right behind her ear, and whispered, "I gotta have you, Liv. Right now."

Olivia made a teeny whimpering noise. "Hey, Fin," she said, addressing her friend, "Can you man the grill for a second? We're gonna go check on the cake. And start getting the gifts."

Fin, oblivious, nodded as he flipped new burgers onto the hot barbecue. "Yup," he said.

Elliot pulled Olivia into the house, rushing to find the guest room. He pushed open the door and practically tossed her on the bed. He tugged off his tie and pulled at his shirt. "Fuck, baby, I think you're contagious. I have your disease."

"What disease," Olivia asked, yanking at his pants, smirking when she released him. She took him into her mouth, immediately, as she felt Elliot pulling her dress up over her head.

"Oh, God damn, baby," Elliot mumbled. He tossed her dress to the floor and his hands went to the back of her head. "Whatever sickness you get when you're pregnant that just makes you want sex, all the fucking time."

Olivia released him with a pop. "It's not a disease," she said. "It's love. Love and desire and lust. Only for you."

Elliot gently eased her back down on the bed, grabbing at her pink panties. He pulled them off of her. "Yeah, definitely what I've got," he muttered. He crawled over her, allowing his tongue to slide up her center, then dip into her belly button as he worked his way up her body. He met her face to face, kissed her deeply, and pushed into her, slowly, feeling it, inch by inch, moaning as it happened.

"Oh, God, Elliot," Olivia groaned. Her voice sounded low and throaty, turning Elliot on even more.

"Liv," Elliot whispered, "Oh, baby, you feel good. So good."

Olivia nodded, her lips against his, her tongue pushing into his mouth, her hips thrusting to meet his, her arms wrapping around him to hold him tighter. Her mind blocked out the party going on outside, her brain wouldn't let her think about her family and several of her stepdaughter's friends who were probably wondering where she and Elliot were. All that mattered now was her, and him, and this moment.

"Shit, baby," Elliot gasped, feeling her clench and shake. "Already? Damn."

"That was number two, El," Olivia moaned, running her nails down his back. "Don't stop. God, please, don't stop."

Elliot kissed her passionately, moving in and out of her, deeply, roughly. "I have no intentions of stopping, baby," he told her. He held her tighter, moved faster, and kissed her harder.

"God, yes. El, shit, yes, baby," Olivia moaned into the kiss, bucking her hips to meet his, tightening her grip on him with her walls and her arms.

"Liv, let go," Elliot said against her skin. "Hit me with number three, baby. I'm with you this time," he promised.

Olivia squeezed her eyes shut and threw her head back, seeing stars behind her eyelids, but she popped her eyes open in time to look at Elliot as he exploded within her.

"Fuck," he grunted. "God damn," he panted, "I love you, baby, I love you so much," he whispered, rolling them over. Breathless, gasping for air, holding Olivia close, he kissed her forehead and wiped her damp hair back. "I love you, baby. I know things with us aren't exactly how you dreamed they'd be…"

"Elliot," Olivia interrupted. They are! You have always been the man of my dreams. Not a day goes by that I don't have to convince myself that you're really mine."

Elliot smiled up at her. "I feel the same way, baby. You and our family are my whole world."

"Our family!" Olivia gasped, climbing off of him. "Shit!"

Elliot hopped out of the bed, scrambling to find his clothes. "See? We get so wrapped up in each other all the time, we forget the fucking world is still spinning."

"It's easy to get wrapped up in you," Olivia said, pulling the hem of her dress down.

Elliot, struggling to fix his tie, said, "Yeah. I am kinda hot."

Olivia finished tying his tie, kissed him, and said, "And not one bit conceited."

"I'm not conceited, baby," Elliot said, putting his shoes on. "I'm honest. You and me, baby, we're fucking hot. And we make gorgeous babies."

Olivia slipped on her heels and put her hand on the doorknob. "We certainly do, El."

Elliot moved closer, and as Olivia opened the door, Elliot wrapped his arms around her. "This one is only number two," he whispered. "I was serious when I said I wanted as many as you'll give me. It's in God's hands. No planning it. No stopping it. If we end up with fifteen kids, so be it."

"I will kill you," Olivia joked, her expressionless eyes glaring into her husbands.

"Okay," Elliot laughed. "Not fifteen. But Liv, you know what I mean."

"I do," Olivia said, kissing him as he led her back out onto the deck. "And I couldn't agree more."

Cragen turned to them as he heard the glass doors slide open. He smiled and asked, "And where were you?"

Elliot looked from his captain to his wife and said, "Liv had a craving."

"Oh?" Casey chirped. "I'm starting, too. What did you want?"

Olivia smirked. "Nothing that the rest of you would have wanted to watch me eat," she said, chuckling.

"Here, Elliot," Tucker said, handing his son a plate of food. "I'm taking over the grill. You spend time with your family. Eat."

"Thanks, Dad," Elliot said, biting into his burger.

Ed looked at him warmly, felt the tears spring to his eyes, and said, "Yeah."

Olivia was shocked. She was staring at her husband.

"What?" Elliot said, his mouth full of cheese and beef.

Olivia smiled at him. She leaned in and whispered, "You just called him, 'Dad,' baby."

"Uh, yeah, I did. He's my Dad, Liv," Elliot said, swallowing and taking a sip of his beer. "It's about time I start calling him that, right?"

Olivia kissed him, nuzzled his nose, and said, "Right."

"You got a little something…" Elliot broke off, and kissed her again, this time licking around her lips. He pulled away from her, winked, and said, "Ketchup."

Olivia chuckled, rolling her eyes, and wrapped her arms around him as he finished his burger. She looked out at her family, because that's exactly what this lot of fools was, and she smiled. She'd finally been given the one thing she'd always wanted, a big family, and she couldn't wait to see how much bigger it would get.

**A/N: So, I did what I could with the lines I was given. Hopefully, they're all in there. Some of them were PM's so I tried to make them all work =) For chapter 51, why don't you all give me an ACTION you'd like to see a character DO! Let's really go crazy! **


	51. Chapter 51

**A/N: CHAPTER 51! When I said, "Let's really go crazy," I didn't mean, "Let's make all of Mr. Wolf's and my characters insane!" Lol. Some of these actions are a bit out there, but I think I pulled it off. ;)**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks.**

_"Munch!" Cragen yelled, bolting out of his office in a pair of pink boxers. "Give them back! Right now!"_

_Munch had just run out of the interrogation room with Cragen's pants on his head. He was shouting, "Protect yourselves! It's a sign! A sign from JFK! The world's gonna end when Olivia has that baby!"_

_Olivia, blinking in confusion at Munch's mental breakdown, walked out of the squadroom, and found herself suddenly in Judge Donnelly's office. Elliot was leaning against her desk, playing with a slinky. "Hey, baby!" he said, cheerfully, putting the metal spring down and smiling at her. He held out his hand. _

_Olivia, still confused, took it, and allowed herself to be pulled closer to him. "What are we doing here?" she asked. _

_"Waiting for Donnelly to sign this damn warrant," Elliot replied, tossing the blue packet on her desk. He turned Olivia around, pressing himself against her from behind her and said, "While we're waiting, though, there's something I'd like to do…"_

_"Elliot!" Olivia gasped, shocked, trying to turn around. _

_"Shh," Elliot shushed, holding her in place, running his hands up her dress. _

_Dress? That confused her. A second ago, she was wearing pants. She shook her head and got lost in the feeling of Elliot, touching her, about to make love to her, over Donnelly's desk. Knowing she could walk in at any moment was thrilling. Olivia felt Elliot slide her panties to the side and push inside of her, and she gripped the desk, bending forward a bit more. "Oh, Elliot," she moaned. _

_Elliot chuckled, reached for her hair, and pulled hard. Olivia closed her eyes and growled a bit as she backed further into him, and when she opened them again, they were in the backseat of a cherry red convertible, and he was underneath her now, still thrusting, still making love to her. _

_"What the hell just happened?" she asked, blinking, stopping her motions. _

_"Livvy, baby, come on," Elliot said, thrusting up into her. "I know we're cramped in here, but you can't make me do all the work."_

_"Livvy?" she questioned. "Since when do you call me…" she paused when he hit a certain spot inside of her that made her ripple. "Damn, El."_

_Elliot chuckled, looked up at her, and that's when she noticed how incredibly young he looked, and how odd it was that he was naked except for a leather jacket. _

_"What, oh, God, Elliot," she cried, feeling an intense orgasm building. She ran her hands over his body, and caught a glimpse of herself in the rearview mirror. Her hair was up in a high ponytail with a chiffon scarf tied in a bow around it. She looked around, trying to judge where they were. She was confused. They were at a drive in movie theater, they were in the backseat of a car neither of them had ever owned, and Elliot looked to be about sixteen. _

_"Come on, Livvy, baby, cum for me," Elliot said, bending his head up and grasping onto one of her nipples. "Come on, Liv," he said. "Liv?"_

Olivia shook her head, moaning Elliot's name.

"Liv!" Elliot said, jostling her, finally managing to get her eyes open. "Will you stop doing that? Not that it doesn't feel incredible, but it's three o'clock in the morning, and we were both asleep. Technically, I can arrest you. What the hell were you dreaming about?"

Olivia blinked, and removed her hand from between Elliot's legs. "Jesus," she mumbled. "No more chimichangas before bed. I don't care how pregnant I am."

Elliot chuckled. "That bad, huh? It certainly felt damn good, and those noises you were making…that did not sound like you were having a nightmare, baby," he told her, turning over and enfolding her in his arms. "Tell me about it."

Olivia nestled into her husband's arms. "Uh, obviously," she said, "We were having sex. In a car. before that it was on Donnelly's desk. Munch had Cragen's pants on his head…"

"Okay, stop right there," Elliot laughed. "Go back to the part where you were, apparently, having your way with me." He nibbled lightly on her neck, making her moan. "Yeah, you made that noise a few times." Elliot suckled on her neck as his hand moved over her body.

Olivia moaned again. Then she laughed. "We were sixteen, at least. I think we were in the Fifties, El. I think I was imagining us as a very kinky Danny and Sandy from _Grease_."

Elliot laughed. "You really do need to lay off the Mexican food before bed," he said, nuzzling into her. He was just about to kiss her when they heard the baby cry.

"I'll get him," Olivia said. "Trust me, I'm awake."

Elliot shook his head. "Baby, stay in bed," he said. "I'll get him."

"Why don't we both go?" Olivia said, rolling her eyes. "We're both too damn stubborn, and I'm not gonna argue while our son cries."

They walked into the nursery, the room next to theirs, and both faces lit up when they saw Josh, standing up in his crib, his arms up, crying. "Maaa," he cried.

Olivia gasped. "El! Did he just…"

"I don't know," Elliot said, baffled. "He's only nine-months old."

Josh waved his arms and repeated, "Maaa," as he cried, only this time he said, "Daaa," too.

"Oh, my God, El," Olivia gasped, lifting the boy into her arms. His sobs stopped instantly and he clutched onto his mother.

Josh wrapped his little hands around Olivia's pajama top and said, "Ma, ma, ma, ma."

Elliot brushed his finger over Josh's cheek, as tears filled his eyes. "That's right buddy," he said, quietly, lovingly. "She's your mama."

Josh blinked, tilted his little head, and gave Elliot a big, gummy smiled. "Da, da, da, da," he said, hitting Elliot in the arm.

A tear rolled down Elliot's cheek as he looked down at his son.

Olivia, weeping softly as well, said, "Yeah, baby boy. That's Dada, Joshie." She laughed, despite her tears, because even though they were just noises, just sounds, they were the baby's way of telling them he knew who they were, and that he loved them.

* * *

"You two look happy," Munch said, watching Elliot and Olivia walk in the next day.

Olivia glanced at Elliot, smirked, and said, "We had a really nice night." She turned, then, looking at Munch, and burst into a fit of hysterics. She couldn't help but imagine him with Cragen's pants on his head.

"You okay, Baby-Girl?" Fin asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Perfect," Olivia nodded. She took a seat at her desk, preparing to check her voicemail.

Elliot was still smiling, beaming with fatherly pride, as he sat across from her. "Anything exciting happen in the, what, ten minutes you two have been here?"

Munch shook his head. "Nope, not unless you think Cragen making the coffee is exciting."

Olivia looked up, sadly. "The first time in how many years, and I can't drink it," she complained. She was listening to the message play in her ear, and she rolled her eyes. She hit the "next" button and listened as the men chatted.

"We got a few updates coming in," Fin said. "Monsen, Demetri, and Hendrix."

"Hendrix?" Elliot questioned, making a face.

Fin nodded. "Her trial's comin' up. Alex wants to sit in with her and her lawyer tomorrow while we re-interview her. See if she's ready to cop to anything else. Maybe work out a plea bargain."

Elliot nodded, then looked at Olivia to tell her, but she was still listening to the message with a goofy grin on her face and a twinkle in her eyes. He looked at her with a furrowed brow and silently asked her what was going on.

Olivia hung up the phone, got out of her seat and, said, "Hey, El, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Yeah," Elliot said, his face screwed up in concern. He wrapped an arm around her back as they walked into the pit, and she returned the gesture, discreetly sliding her hand down to grab his ass. "Hey, now!" he yelped with a chuckle. "You said you wanted to talk. That's gonna lead to…not talking."

"And why would that be bad?" Olivia asked, squeezing his body closer, harder.

Elliot grunted and narrowed her eyes. "What has gotten into you?"

"Nothing," Olivia said, leaning into him. "Yet."

"Oh, not this again," Elliot laughed. "Come on, baby, tell me what you wanted, because I know you don't wanna have sex in the interrogation room. We broke the table last time."

Olivia laughed. "Doctor Feinstein left a message for me," she said.

Elliot's eyes widened. "Oh, God, is everything okay? Is there something wrong with the baby?"

"No, honey, she's just fine," Olivia said, kissing him.

"Oh, thank God, because whenever you tell me the doctor…what?" Elliot asked, finally realizing what she said. "She?"

Olivia bit her bottom lip and nodded happily. "It's a girl," she said. "That's what he wanted to tell us."

Elliot swallowed back his tears, looked Olivia in the eyes, and kissed her as passionately as he could while in the pit of an interrogation room. "A little girl," he whispered against her lips. "She's gonna be gorgeous, just like her mommy," he told her, still kissing her. "I want her to have your eyes," he said, "Your beautiful, chocolate eyes." He pulled back from the kiss to look in the eyes of which he was speaking, and he sniffled.

"El," Olivia said, tears in her own eyes, "Baby, look at you." She chuckled, swiping the tears away from his eyes with her thumb.

"No, Liv, look at _you_," Elliot said, softly, running a hand over her now-four-and-a-half-month-old belly. "You've got our daughter in there. _Our_ daughter. You're gonna have a little girl, and she's gonna be strong, and independent, and breathtakingly beautiful. She's gonna be everything you are, Liv. She's gonna be perfect."

Olivia kissed Elliot again, and took his hand to lead him out into the squadroom, where, by now, there was a crime needing to be solved. "I know she is, El. And she's gonna be so loved, and spoiled, by her daddy."

"So true," Elliot said, kissing her neck. He looked up at the sound of a clearing throat. "Dad?"

Tucker nodded. "Yeah, Elliot. As much as I love the both of you, unfortunately this isn't a social visit. Officer involved sexual assault, I need to be here when you interrogate the suspect."

Elliot looked around, noticing that Fin and Munch were gone. "They went to get him?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at Cragen.

Cragen nodded. "Yeah, you wanna tell me what was so personally important you needed to bury yourselves in the pit for ten minutes?"

Olivia flushed. "I just wanted to tell him," she cleared her throat, "My doctor called. We're having a girl."

Cragen smirked. Tucker gasped and smiled. "That's wonderful," Tucker said, pulling them both in for a quick hug. He looked at Elliot and said, "You know, now you're gonna have six kids. That's as many as the Brady Bunch."

Elliot chuckled. "We're not done, Pop," he said, resting his chin on Olivia's shoulder as he wrapped her up in his arms. "We're just getting started."

Tucker frowned. "Do you really think you can afford…"

"Kathy's life insurance covered a lot of bases, Dad," Elliot said. "Liv was born to be a mother. I know she thinks of my kids as hers, but the babies we make, together, are truly allowing her to be a Mommy. I'm not gonna tell her I can't have five kids with her because I had four with someone else. She wants five? She's getting five."

"I don't want _five_," Olivia said, wide-eyed.

Elliot laughed. "I know, I was just trying to explain to my father that my life with you includes having a houseful of kids." He kissed her cheek. "Not like we're gonna be able to help it," he said in a low, sexy tone. "Can't keep our damn hands off of each other."

Olivia chuckled, wriggling in his embrace, but the cheerful, playful mood shifted when Munch and Fin came back in with the perp and the vic. Olivia just looked at him, with narrow, confused eyes.

"Do you know him?" Elliot asked, straightening up.

Olivia nodded. "He was one of my training officers when I was a rookie. Bill Dwyer."

The man in cuffs looked at Olivia, almost shamefully. "I didn't think you'd still be here, Benson."

Olivia took a breath and said, "I'm still here, Dwyer."

The man lowered his eyes. "Let's do this, huh? Show me if you still got those killer interrogation skills."

"I do," Olivia said, taking him from Munch. "And they've only gotten better."

**A/N: Who is this man? Why does he seem so ashamed to be around Olivia? What will the interrogation bring out? And what do they name their little girl? Poke the button! Go on, poke it!**


	52. Chapter 52

**A/N: Who is this Bill Dwyer? Why does he seem so ashamed to be around Olivia? And what happens when Hendrix fails to show for that meeting? **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks.**

"He cracked like a peanut," Elliot said, rubbing his hands together as he came out of the interrogation room.

"Doesn't hurt that the man was incredibly intimidated by your partner, does it?" Munch asked, tilting his head.

"I wish she'd tell me why," Elliot said, scratching his head.

"She will," Munch said, "When he leaves and you can't kill him."

Elliot furrowed his brow. "How do you know, and I don't?" he asked.

"I know Bill," Munch said.

Olivia walked out, shaking her head, sighing as she ran a hand through her hair. "That was interesting," she said. "I knew he was a little pushy, but I never thought he would actually go this far."

"Liv, did he try something with you?" Elliot asked, picking up the suggestion in her words.

Olivia looked at Elliot, then turned away from him. "Nothing I couldn't handle. It was a long time ago, Elliot. And he was sorry, trust me."

"Liv," Elliot said, softly, warning her that she needed to talk to him, "Come on."

Olivia sighed. "He was a dick, okay? He tried, at least once a day, to get into my pants. When he realized it wasn't working, he took it upon himself to tell me that if I didn't give him what he wanted I'd never get my gold shield. I socked him one, broke his nose, and told him to shove the badge up his ass."

"Did you report him?" Elliot asked, his eyes wide.

"No," Olivia said, sitting at her desk. "When he healed, he told me he was sorry, and he never tried anything again."

"What did he mean when he said he didn't think you'd still be here?" Elliot asked, trying to wrap his head around what Olivia was telling him.

Olivia cleared her throat. "When I got my detective's shield, he found out I was opting for Special Victims, and he told me that he thought I'd only last a week. Told me I was too weak to stick it out. I left the Two-Nine determined to prove him wrong. To prove everyone wrong."

"And you did," Cragen said, nodding. "And he's going to Rikers, where he belongs, because you did."

Olivia looked up at her captain and smiled. "Thanks," she said.

"You guys gonna be okay when Novak brings Hendrix up here?" Fin asked, sensing the sudden tension.

"We'll be fine," Elliot said, nodding. "Because you and Munch are talking to her."

"What?" Munch asked. "Why?"

Elliot raised en eyebrow. "We were her victims, for one thing, and I really don't want Liv to beat the crap out of anyone while she's pregnant."

"I'm not gonna beat the crap out…" Olivia stopped, seeing the knowing look on Elliot's face. "Okay, so maybe I was planning to hit her once. Or, like, six times, but whatever."

Elliot laughed, as did Cragen and Fin, but Munch shook his head. "Violence is not the answer, Benson."

Olivia raised an eyebrow at the use of her maiden name, and laughed. "You can't be serious," she said as Cragen moved back into his office.

"I am," Munch said. "She's a psychotherapist, hit her where it hurts. Use your words and actions. Kill her with kindness."

Olivia dropped her eyes, and looked at him as if to say, "You've gotta be kidding me." She tilted her head and asked, "Are you on drugs?"

Fin chuckled. "He is, actually. Pain killers, Baby-Girl. He threw his back out last night."

"How?" Elliot asked.

Fin laughed again. "Ask his wife."

"Oh, I didn't need to know that," Elliot said, chuckling. "How did you throw your back out during sex?"

Olivia chuckled, giving Elliot a look. "Same way you dislocate your shoulder, almost break your knee, nearly lose consciousness and give yourself a concussion," she said.

"Wow, what?" Fin asked, shocked.

"Nothing!" Elliot yelled. "My _partner_ has a very vivid imagination," Elliot said.

Olivia chuckled again. "And very active medical insurance," she said, narrowing her eyes.

"Okay, I'm missin' somethin' I don't wanna be missin' here," Fin said. "We got five minutes, spill it."

Elliot rolled his eyes, and laughed to himself. "Jesus, Liv, when you're hormonal you lose control of that censor button, don't you?"

"Yep," Olivia muttered, folding her arms over her belly. "Tell him, El, it's okay."

"Well," Elliot began, clearing his throat, "Once, we got a little…"

"We?" Olivia asked, raising both eyebrows.

Elliot narrowed his eyes. "Yes, Liv, 'we,' because I distinctly remember almost losing consciousness because of your legs being wrapped too tightly around my neck! You had a hand it this," he told her.

"More than just my hand," Olivia quipped, smirking.

"Okay," Fin said, "Can you just tell the story?"

Elliot laughed. "We got a little over-enthusiastic, and she ended up slamming me into the headboard, which is where my shoulder popped out and I hit my head. Then, like an hour later, we rolled clean off the bed, and I landed on my knee, with her still wrapped around me, still moving. She did this awesome back flip, scissor-kick thing, flipping us both over and knocked my shoulder back into place, at the same time making me fully aware that I had a concussion."

"Holy shit," Munch said, eyeing Olivia up and down. "You've got real issues, Benson."

"I have the whole damn subscription, Munch," Olivia snarked back, looking sultrily at Elliot.

Elliot's breath hitched. He knew that look, and he needed to get his mind out of the gutter. He had work to do. "So, that was the story," he said, clearing his throat and reaching for a pen.

Casey came running in, with Derek Henshall behind her. "We have a problem," she spat, looking at Fin.

"With the baby?" Fin asked, panicking.

"No, moron!" Henshall yelled. "With the defendant."

Olivia raised an eyebrow. "Rebecca Hendrix has a lot of problems, why are you just realizing this now?"

Henshall looked at her and rolled his eyes. "What did Trevor ever see in you?"

"Same thing anyone with working eyes and a brain would," Elliot spat. "What's the deal with Hendrix?"

"She's gone," Casey said, running a calming hand over her belly. "This kid is doing jumping jacks, and I've got a missing defendant. This isn't a good day for me."

"Who was she with?" Olivia asked, rising from her seat.

"Grant and Mulroney," Henshall said. "Two uniforms from your precinct. You can't blame anyone but yourselves for this, this time."

"We're on it," Fin said, holding up a hand to Cragen who had stepped out of his office.

Cragen nodded, then looked toward Olivia and Elliot. "You two are staying here until we find her," he said. "She's out gunning for you two."

"She doesn't wanna deal with me, Cap," Olivia said, making a face that signified discomfort as she, too, rubbed her belly. "Hormones, irritation, and indigestion make Olivia a very pissy girl."

Elliot nodded in agreement. "Yeah, they do," he said. "Thankfully she's never misplaced any of that anger and aggression."

"Um, I separated your shoulder," Olivia said, with a scoff and a nod.

Elliot smirked at her. "That wasn't misplaced, baby," he said. "That was…very correctly placed anger and aggression."

Cragen rolled his eyes and Fin and Munch chuckled as they all left to find their missing perp. Henshall glared at Olivia.

"What, Henshall?" Olivia asked, rising from her seat to get a banana from the fruit bowl, stocked by Tucker.

"You destroyed him," Henshall said. "You drove him crazy!"

Olivia bit into the fruit and gave him a confused look. "Sorry, who?" she asked.

"Trevor! You're not even sorry!" Henshall yelled.

"Woah, pal," Olivia said with a shocked grin, "He came to my wedding, he sends my son little presents, he's been nothing but nice to us for a very long time, so…"

Henshall cut her off. "He wants to stay in your life, Olivia! He's doing it any way he knows how! But you will never know the hell that loving you has put him through," he said, shaking his head. "And how you just don't care…"

"I care," Olivia interrupted. "If I had known…wait, why are you so concerned with Langan's well being?"

Henshall was quiet for a moment. Then he said, "It's Henshall and Langan, isn't it? If he drowns in his own sorrow because of some bitch detective, then my whole practice is in jeopardy."

At that moment, Trevor walked in, leading Hendrix in cuffs behind him. "I am not going to pretend to know why she was in my office," he said, tossing hold her shoulder. "But here she is. I should call my partner, this is Derek's…Derek?"

"Trevor!" Henshall gasped.

Trevor looked helplessly at Olivia. "What's going on, here? Miss Hendrix told me you told her to wait in my office for you, and you're here, without her. You're violating…"

"I know what I did, Trevor!" Henshall yelled. "God, you couldn't just let her wait for me for a few more minutes?"

Trevor shook his head. "No, she had to be here at seven o'clock. It's seven thirty, I was not going to violate a court order, or do anything that would…"

"Jeopardize Olivia's case, right?" Henshall interrupted. "The only reason you refused to handle Miss Hendrix's case is because she was trying to hurt your precious, little, Olivia."

"She's a friend," Trevor said, shaking his head and blinking. "What are you accusing me of, exactly, Derek?"

Elliot rose from his seat, walking over to Henshall. "I know what I'm accusing you of, Henshall. Derek Henshall you are under arrest for aiding the escape of a criminal, harboring a criminal, withholding evidence and obstruction of justice," he said. "You have the right to…"

"I know my Goddamned rights, Stabler," Henshall spat. "Cut the shit, just uncuff me, she's here, isn't she?"

Trevor bit his lip. "Why did you do this, Derek?"

Henshall looked him in the eyes. "For you, Trevor. She needed to pay for what she did to you! She needed to get a taste of her own medicine! She needed to see how it felt to have the person she loved more than anything be with someone else!"

"You really think Elliot would have gone for Rebecca? Get a grip," Trevor said, shaking his head.

"She needed to feel what you felt!" Henshall yelled as Mulroney took him away. "What I feel!"

Casey, Elliot, Olivia and Trevor stared after him in stunned silence.

"Please," Trevor said, blinking, "Tell me he didn't just say he was in love with me."

He was met with silence.

"That's what I thought," Trevor said. "I'm not defending her," he said, looking at Elliot. "It's not because I'm in love with Olivia. I'm over it, I swear. It's because I do care for the both of you very much. She'll need a new attorney."

"No, I won't," Hendrix said, still in the arms of Officer Grant. "I'd like to talk to someone, give a full statement, and I'd like to apologize. I was out of line, and I really…" she was abruptly shut up by Olivia's fist meeting her jaw. She collapsed into the cop's arms, out cold.

"That," Olivia said, "Felt damn good."

Trevor's jaw was on the floor. Casey chuckled. Elliot's eyes were wide. "What did you do that for?" he asked, turning toward his wife.

"Cragen wasn't here to see it," Olivia said, smirking, rubbing her knuckles, "And I have wanted to punch her for months." She looked at Elliot, her eyes glinting. "No one messes with you and gets away with it."

* * *

Walking into the house, Elliot set the alarm, hung up his suit jacket, pulled off his tie and kicked off his shoes. He walked over to Olivia, wrapped his arms around her, and held her as they climbed the stairs. He tapped lightly on Dickie's door and said, "We're home."

"Kay," Dickie yelled, swinging his door open. He hugged them both and said, "My little brother is the most awesome person in the universe." He handed Olivia the baby, and said, "All of us helped. See?" He pointed into his room, and the two youngest Stabler girls were in awkward positions, asleep. Maureen, though, was awake and smiling.

Maureen walked over and put her arm around her little brother. "That little guy actually makes us get along," she said. "We worked together, didn't fight, we all played with him, changed him, fed him. It was fun!"

Olivia glanced at Elliot and smiled. "Our son's a little miracle-worker," she said.

"Just a miracle," Elliot said, kissing the little boys forehead. "Like this one," he said, running a hand over her belly.

"Dad, you said you were gonna tell us when you got home!" Maureen said, excited.

Elliot laughed. "It's a girl," he said, smiling. "A little girl."

Maureen clapped and Dickie rolled his eyes. "So, there's always gonna be more girls than boys in this house," he said, shaking his head.

"Unless the next two are boys," Elliot said, laughing at the expression on Olivia's face. "You never know, kid. We could break even," he said, winking at Dickie.

The four of them shared a laugh, then Olivia and Elliot stepped into the room, kissed each child goodnight, and made their way to Josh's blue cop-themed nursery. "All right buddy," Elliot said, laying him down on the changing table. "Stop kicking Daddy, Joshie, we gotta get you dressed for bed." He laughed as Josh kicked his little legs and said, "Da, da, da, da, da!"

Olivia shook her head and chuckled. "Having a hard time over there?" she asked, her arms folded.

"Nope," Elliot said. "Everything is just fine, Mommy." He lifted the boy into his arms, brought him over to Olivia and said, "Say night-night to Momma, bud."

Josh grabbed the collar of Olivia's shirt and pulled, trying to hug her, and said, "Ny, ny, ma, ma, ma, ma."

"I'll be damned," Elliot gasped. "Our kid really is amazing, isn't he?"

Olivia helped Elliot put the baby in his crib, and wrapped her arms around her husband. "All of our kids are amazing," she said, rubbing her nose against his, pecking him lightly on the lips.

"They have an amazing mother," Elliot said, kissing her again, "And a pretty amazing father, if I do say so myself." He gave Olivia his classic arrogant smirk, kissed her one more time, and said, "It seems it's bedtime for you, too, Misses Stabler."

Olivia looked back into the crib. "El," she began, "What would you say if I told you…after we have this baby…that I wanted to stay home with the kids?"

"I'd say I know that," Elliot said. "I'm staying home with them, too, remember? Cragen…"

"No, El," Olivia interrupted. "I meant…like, permanently."

Elliot stopped breathing. He looked into her eyes as he felt his chest constrict. "You're thinking of quitting the unit?"

**A/N: Doink-doink! What does she say? Will Elliot talk her out of it, or say he thinks it's a great idea? And what about that baby name? Review for more! **


	53. Chapter 53

**A/N: Will Elliot talk Olivia out of quitting? Is she really thinking about it? And what name do they choose for their girl? **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks**

"I don't know," Olivia said, answering Elliot's question. "Maybe."

"Liv," Elliot began. "I know, and you know, that this wouldn't happen, but if you leave, I am scared to death that you're gonna end up just like Kathy. I'm gonna get a new partner, who you'll hate, and won't trust. I would never, ever, look at anyone the way I look at you, but you'd never believe me. You won't know where I am or what I'm doing. I'll tell you, and you won't believe me. I can't go through that again, not with you. It'll kill me."

Olivia looked up, shocked at his words, and shook her head. "It won't be like that," she promised. "I trust you, El. I know you would never do anything to hurt me or our family. And you'll talk to me, right? About work? I'll know that you're working, having been there myself."

Elliot scoffed. "Liv, part of the reason I fell in love with you was because I spent more time with you than at home," he reminded her. "I was _never_ home. I would never come home. We'd never see each other! And I wouldn't talk to you. Once you put this life behind you, I wouldn't wanna put the horror in your head that doesn't need to be there anymore." He sighed and caressed her cheek. "The reason we work as great as we do is because we're partners. The love and the trust that we had for each other at work carried over into a real relationship. I couldn't handle it if we lost that." He looked into her eyes, sighed again, and asked, "Baby, is this really what you want?"

Olivia bit her bottom lip. "I love my job, El, you know I do," she admitted. "I just, I don't want to miss anything. I don't want to miss any first steps, or the first time our little girl rolls over."

"Did you?" Elliot asked. "Did we miss anything Joshie's done, Liv?"

Olivia shook her head. "No, we didn't. I just don't want the kids to grow up resenting me because I was never there. El, I don't want…I don't want to become my mother."

Elliot sighed. "That's what this is?" he asked, slightly relieved. "Baby, we have been here for every moment. Josh comes to work with us, so will…she. You are nothing like your mother, at all. You are warm, and nurturing, and incredibly hands-on, with all of the kids. Our children will never resent you, because you have been, and will be there for them. Always."

Olivia smiled slightly at him. "I don't want you resenting me, either."

"Why would I…are you serious?" Elliot asked, letting go of her.

Olivia shrugged. "Well, I just thought, maybe, you'd want me to…"

"You thought I'd want you to stay home?" Elliot asked, furrowing his brow. "Why the hell would you think that?"

"Casey said Fin wants her to quit," Olivia said, walking out of the nursery into the bedroom. "He practically demanded that she leave. He wants her to stay home with the baby, be a mother, a wife, a…"

"Fin is nothing like me," Elliot said, following her. "And Casey is nothing like you. I want you, Liv, just the way you are. How I fell in love with you. I want to walk into work every day and see you in the desk across from mine, I want to watch you chase perps and console the victims, and I want to be in that interrogation room, going head-to-head with you, playing good-cop-bad-cop until we break them, like we always do." He pulled off his shirt and slipped out of his jeans, looking for his sweatpants in the drawer. "Baby, I know who you are. I knew who you were when I married you. You hate cleaning, the most you cook is pasta unless it's one of the rare times we cook together, I would never ask you to make that your life. It would kill you. It would kill me. Us." He turned to look at her and he felt his heart give a thud at the look on her face.

"You have no idea how relieved I am to hear you say that," Olivia told him, throwing her arms around him.

Elliot squeezed her close, closing his eyes in relief. "I need you with me, Liv. Always."

Olivia nodded into his chest.

"Joshie and…ya know, we still haven't picked out a name for her," Elliot said, changing his train of thought. He pulled back from their embrace to look at her, kissed her nose, and asked, "Any ideas?"

Olivia bit her lip again, nervous about what Elliot would say. "You remember, when we had that first stake out together, and to keep each other awake we started talking naming our unborn children?"

Elliot laughed. "God, yeah. We came up with things like Coco Chanel Benson and Dallas Cowboy Stabler."

"Yeah," Olivia chuckled. "Then we actually got serious. You told me when you had Maureen, you wanted to name her something else, but Kathy wouldn't let you. You told me that if you ever had another girl, you'd give her that name. I asked you why, and then you started singing the song."

"You remember…baby that was five years ago," Elliot said, stunned, turning the bed down to get in.

"I remember it like it was yesterday, El," Olivia said, smirking. "The way you sang that song. And you told me the story, about the girl falling in love with someone her father hated, and he forced her to marry someone else, and she died of a broken heart. The man she loved drove himself crazy with guilt and killed himself to be with her," she explained. "It was all so beautiful. The name is beautiful."

Elliot looked at her with nothing but warmth and love in his eyes. "Really, Liv?" he asked, the happiness evident in his voice.

"Leyla," she said. "It means dark beauty, and you said you wanted her to have my features, which are pretty damn dark. This might be kind of pushing her in the right direction."

Elliot pulled Olivia toward him, ran a hand down her body, resting it on her belly. He smirked as he looked into Olivia's eyes and he sang, "Leyla, you got me on my knees. Leyla, I'm beggin' darlin' please. Leyla, darlin' won't you ease my worried mind…" he stopped singing and kissed Olivia. Deep and slow, passionate, he kissed her as his hand caressed her belly, saying hello to his daughter.

Olivia pulled away from the kiss, slowly, and looked into his eyes. "I love when you sing to me," she said, smiling. "You usually do it in cars on stake-outs," she laughed.

"I will sing to you every night," Elliot said, smiling back at her, "For the rest of our lives." He kissed her again and said, "You know what my favorite song is?"

Olivia nodded. "That one by Edie Brickell, something about lights on the river. You only played half of it, once, and I haven't head it since."

Elliot chuckled. "I never let you hear the whole thing. It was kind of embarrassing, because we weren't together." He began humming, taking her in his arms and swaying, then he sang, "There's so much more to see, why stay behind when you could go off with me? Olivia, won't you let your heart come home?"

Olivia gasped and grinned at him.

"Yeah, the song's called 'Olivia', and it's about this guy who's madly in love with a girl named Olivia, and he wants her to be with him, even though she's never even given him a second glance," Elliot explained. He kissed her lips gently and said, "I haven't heard it in a while either. I stopped listening to it when you, uh, kissed me in your sink. I didn't need the song anymore, because I had you."

Olivia laughed and kissed him again. "You are such a romantic," she said.

"For you, baby, I am," Elliot said. "You and little Leyla Olivia Stabler."

Olivia raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth to speak, but Elliot stopped her.

"Joshua Elliot," Elliot said, giving her a look. "That's all I'm saying."

Olivia rolled her eyes and sighed, nodding. "You win," she said, chuckling.

"I know I do," Elliot returned, finally crawling into the bed and pulling her down to him gently. He pulled the covers up over them and snuggled close to her. "I won, a long time ago, the minute you kissed me."

Olivia cuddled into him and said, "I think I'm the one who won that night, El."

They wrapped themselves together and kissed, slow and quiet, until they fell asleep.

* * *

A chirping phone woke them , at four in the morning, and Elliot shot a hand out to get it. "Stabler," he mumbled, his face pressed into the pillow. He popped it up, though. "What?" he asked, sounding panicked. "All right, stay calm, we'll be there as soon as we can. Is Fin trying to find any…yeah, um, it's her last name and birthday. Stabler, not Benson. Yes. Right. Bye."

"What was that all about?" Olivia asked, awake. "And who needed my database password?"

"Cragen," Elliot said, getting out of the bed to find clothes. "He needed to get into your open case files. Looking for any cases Munch may have worked on."

"What happened, El?" Olivia asked, panic rising in her, too, as she got up and pulled on some clothes.

Elliot sighed as he zipped up his jeans. "Someone broke into his house. They hit Alex, knocked her out. Someone took Ben," he told her, his eyes wide as he reached for his shirt.

Olivia's eyes widened and she bolted from the room. She knocked on Maureen's door and when it opened, she greeted the groggy blonde with a pained expression.

"Mom? What is it?" Maureen asked, going off Olivia's look. "What happened?"

"We have to go, baby," Olivia said, kissing her forehead. "Watch Joshie?"

"Yeah, of course," Maureen said, nodding.

Dickie, opening his door because he heard the noise, said, "We all will. Go."

Olivia kissed him on the cheek and gave him a proud look. "We'll call you as soon as we can," she said. Elliot, behind her, kissed Maureen and Dickie and followed her down the stairs and out the door, praying their Godson was okay.

**A/N: Who kidnapped Baby Munch? What surprising thing does Joshie do when Olivia and Elliot get home? And a doctor's appointment reveals something lovely about Leyla. Want it? Click and make it happen! Follow TMG212 on Twitter, too. =) **


	54. Chapter 54

**A/N: Who kidnapped Baby Munch? What surprising thing does Joshie do when Olivia and Elliot get home? **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks**

"What happened?" Elliot yelled, running into the squadroom, Olivia's fingers wrapped tightly in his.

"Have you heard anything?" Olivia asked, panicking as she rubbed her belly with her free hand.

Cragen walked over to them. "It seems, uh, that Munch wasn't the one the perp wanted to hurt."

Elliot sighed. "Alex," he said. "How is she?"

Cragen tilted his head. "Concussion," he said. "But she's fine. She's worried about Ben, we all are. We have reason to believe that it was a lawyer with a grudge, or an ex-client trying to hurt her. The diaper bag was taken, and Alex wasn't hurt badly. Whoever took Ben doesn't want to hurt the baby, just wants Alex to panic."

Elliot nodded, running his right hand down his face, squeezing Olivia's with his other. "Any leads?"

Cragen pointed to the interrogation room. "Fin is in there with Trevor," he said. "They're talking about anyone in the D.A's office that might have wanted to hurt Alex. And Chester Lake, from Brooklyn, he's helping out with this. Elliot, don't give me that look, just be nice to him."

"He's a dumbshit cop who think we owe him something because he knows his way around this city," Elliot complained. "Cap, Liv could walk from here to Jersey with her eyes closed, any good cop knows the shit he does!"

"He's doing us a favor," Cragen snapped. "If this was one of your kids…I don't wanna think about that, but you'd want all hands on deck, wouldn't you?"

Elliot grimaced at the thought of this being one of his kids, but he nodded. "I guess, yeah."

"We'll handle this here, in the meantime, you two have a related case," Cragen said, handing Elliot a pink paper. "Another lawyer, he wasn't as lucky as Alex. His kid wasn't taken, but he saw part of the attack before he hid in the panic room. Maybe he can tell you something important."

"Shouldn't this be kicked up to Homicide?" Elliot asked, confused.

Cragen looked at Elliot. "He was raped," he said. "That makes it ours."

Olivia looked at the paper, bit her lip, and nodded. She tugged on Elliot's hand, pulling him toward the door.

They arrived on the scene and Olivia got right to work. She bent under the tape and walked toward the body, then paused, hearing a young boy crying and screaming. "Hey, hey," she yelled. "Leave the kid alone," she told the uniformed officer who was holding him back. She walked over and knelt down. "Hi, there, buddy. My name's Olivia, and I'm a police officer."

The boy sniffled. He looked up at her and said, "Badge."

"Smart boy," Olivia said with a smile, holding out her badge. "That's my friend, Elliot, and we're trying to help you, okay? Can you tell me your name?"

"Sam," the boy said, rubbing his eyes.

"Okay, Sam," Olivia said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry you had to see your father like that…"

"He's not my father," Sam said, wide-eyed. "That's what I was trying to tell that guy over there. He's the one who tried to take me."

Olivia's eyes widened. "Honey, can you try to tell me what happened?"

Sam nodded. "He broke the window in my room, and I screamed. My mother fran in and then she screamed, too. He chased us into the living room, and my mom fought with him. I heard her scream, then she told me to get into the box."

"The box?" Elliot asked.

"A room with no windows," Sam said, looking up at Elliot.

Olivia looked up at him, too, and said, "The panic room."

"Okay, Sam," Elliot said, giving him a small smile. "Where's your mother now?"

"I don't know," Sam said. "I don't know!" He started to cry, and a neighbor came to get him. Olivia and Elliot nodded their thanks, and walked toward the body.

Elliot looked down and his eyes widened. "Shit," he said. "Are those…did she try to chop him up?"

Melinda Warner, medical examiner, looked up at them. "Meat cleaver," she said. "Found it on the ground near the body." She handed them an evidence bag. "He was, uh, sodomized with a tire iron, too, post-mortem. Whoever did this was…very angry."

"It was the mother," Olivia said, sounding certain.

"You really think a woman did this?" Elliot asked. "Liv, it's so…violent, it would take a lot of strength. You believe the mom could do this?"

Olivia looked up at Elliot. "I could have," she said. "If someone was trying to hurt my kids, I would do this."

Elliot smirked, and gave her a sideways glance. "Okay, now I'm scared of you," he said, seriously.

"If you try to hurt my kids," Olivia said, "You should be."

Elliot looked at her, tilting his head. "Considering your kids are also my kids," he said, smirking. "Liv, I'm never gonna hurt them."

"I know you're not," Olivia said, rising to her feet. "It was a generalization." She looked at Melinda. "Do you have an exact cause of death?"

"One of the cuts from the cleaver sliced through his jugular," Melinda said. "If you find this woman, I would be a little afraid of her."

"Detectives!" a voice called from behind them, "We got another vic over here!"

"Dead?" Elliot asked, yelling back to the officer.

"No," the cop called. "Alive."

Olivia and Elliot ran over to the uniformed officer who was holding up a crying, weak-looking, woman, covered in blood. "Oh, my God!" Olivia yelled, running toward her.

"Olivia," the woman said, "I couldn't let him hurt my son," she cried. "I couldn't let him hurt Sam! I'm sorry, I didn't even realize I was killing him!"

"Okay, honey," Olivia said, "Okay. Kim, calm down, it's gonna be okay."

Elliot watched his wife, her arms around a bruised and sobbing Kim Greylek. He turned around and looked down at the body. "Liv?" he called.

Olivia snapped her head up, looking in his direction. He turned back and met her eyes, and said, "If our kidnapper's dead, how the hell are we gonna find Ben?"

Olivia squeezed her eyes shut and sighed, then led Kim over to her son. She watched them embrace, tearfully, and walked back to Elliot. "Find out who he is, where he lives. He had to have been stashing Ben somewhere while he went to get his next kid."

"I know she's upset, Liv, but you gotta get Kim to talk," Elliot told her. "Ride with her to Mercy, I'll meet you there." He knew he shouldn't, but he kissed her. He needed her to know that he loved her.

Olivia and Elliot walked into the squadroom, an hour later. "Our guy was John Foldger," Elliot called. "Bronx A. D. A. He was targeting the kids of the female attorneys who didn't want to have kids with him," he explained. "Greylek told us everything he told her, and she said that he told her he only had an hour, that he needed to get home to Benny."

"Where's home?" Cragen asked in a yell.

Elliot grabbed a take-away cup of coffee and said, "Liv and I are on our way. Guy had a bachelor pad on Fifty-Second!"

"I'm coming with you!" Chester Lake yelled, grabbing his jacket.

"No, you stay here, Lake," Elliot yelled. "We got this!"

Lake kept following them. "I'm coming, Stabler, whether you and your little woman like it or not."

"Little woman?" Olivia and Elliot spat together.

Lake chuckled and breezed by them, grabbing the keys out of Elliot's hand. "I'm driving," he said. "You two can have the backseat."

Elliot gritted his teeth. "I hate that guy, Liv, I hate him," he seethed.

"Okay, baby," Olivia said, patting his shoulder. "Let's go get our Godson, and you can hate Lake when we get back."

They drove at high speeds, weaving in and out of traffic, with Elliot yelling at Lake the whole time. "My partner is pregnant, asshole! Try not kill us! Could you, maybe, use your damn blinker?"

Lake simply laughed and rolled his eyes, pulling to a screeching stop in front of the building. Olivia and Elliot bolted from the car, drew their guns, and ran up to the front door of the townhouse. "It's unlocked," Olivia yelled, turning the knob and pushing it open.

Elliot was right behind her, watching her back as he always did. "Liv," he whispered, "Do you hear that?"

Olivia listened closely, and heard the unmistakable cry of a baby. "Ben," she said. She followed the cries, with Elliot at her back, up the stairs and through an open door. She gasped. The nursery was fully furnished and decorated. She looked around and then walked over to the crib. "Hey, Benny," she said, scooping up the baby. "It's okay, sweetheart, Aunt Liv is right here."

"Hey," Elliot said, dropping a finger down to his cheek. "So's Uncle Elliot," he said with a chuckle.

Lake, smiling behind them. Picked up his radio and pushed the button. "SVU Portable to central, we found Benjamin Munch, and he's just fine." He sighed as he watched Olivia and Elliot, wrapped around each other, holding the baby. He thought about how they must look at their own kids, with more love in their eyes than they had right now, and he thought, for one brief moment, that that's the life he wanted. He thought, then, that he would use his time at SVU to get it.

* * *

They dropped Ben off at the hospital, spent some time with Alex and Munch, and then headed home. They walked through the door at noon. They yawned the moment the alarm was set, and plopped down on the couch. "I'm exhausted," Olivia mumbled.

"That makes two of us," Elliot said, brushing his hands through Olivia's hair. He cupped her chin and held her steady while he kissed her softly. "I'm not tired enough to go to bed without making love to you tonight, though," he said with a smirk against her lips.

Olivia chuckled. "Guy," she said.

"Guy in love with his wife," Elliot returned. "So, uh, did today help you make your final decision? You gonna quit on me, baby?"

Olivia sighed. "El, today proved that I'm doing exactly what I need to be doing," she said. "I'm right where I need to be, and I need to be there with you."

"Damn right," Elliot said, chuckling as he kissed her again. "Why don't we, uh, head upstairs, and you can be there with me, too."

Olivia chuckled. "Lame line, El," she teased, licking and biting at his bottom lip.

"Or we could stay right here," Elliot said, running his hands down to Olivia's waistline.

"Mom," Kathleen said, walking down the stairs holding Josh. "Dad, I think you guys need to hear this."

Olivia and Elliot rolled their eyes. "Mom and Dad were about to hear something a lot more interesting," he groaned. "What is it sweetpea?"

Kathleen brought the tot over to the couch and said, "Joshie, who's that?" She pointed to Elliot.

Josh reached a hand out and grabbed at Elliot's sleeve and said, "Dada."

Elliot gasped, feeling the tears well up in his eyes. "He wasn't just making noises, Liv,"

Olivia was tearing up, too, and she looked at Elliot. "Guess not," she whispered.

"And who's that?" Kathleen asked, pointing to Olivia.

Josh crawled over Elliot and sat himself in Olivia's lap, touching her face gently. "Mama!" he said with a laugh.

"He's been saying it all morning," Kathleen said. "He would look at your pictures, saying 'mama' and 'dada' and then he's crawl around the house looking for you.

Olivia held her son, looking at him just the way Chester had imagined she would, and leaned closer to Elliot. "El, baby," she whispered, "We have all night to spend together in the bedroom, can we just spend a few hours with our kids?"

Elliot kissed her forehead and nodded. "I love that idea," he said. "Katie, go get your brother and sisters, make some popcorn, and pick out a movie."

Kathleen laughed and said, "Awesome," as she ran up the stairs.

Elliot wrapped his arms and a blanket around Olivia, cuddling close with her. He kissed her slowly and deeply, then dropped a kiss to his son's head. "I think family movie time is gonna end up as family nap time," he said, resting his head on Olivia's, who had hers on his shoulder. She mumbled in agreement, and by the time the other kids had come down stairs, they were both asleep, with baby Josh asleep in their arms.

**A/N: What does Lake do? How long is he going to stay at SVU? What happens when Fin makes good on his promise to get Casey to quit? And what is so special about Baby Leyla? Click to review, or leave me a Tweet TMG212 on Twitter for more! **


	55. Chapter 55

**A/N: Sorry for the delay! FF was having difficulties and I was unable to upload! Here is another installment of Unavoidable! Enjoy :) What's so special about Leyla? ANd is Lake after enriching his own life, or butting in on the Stablers'?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks**

Olivia moaned softly, feeling something, or someone, gently licking and lapping at her slick center. She tried to blink open her eyes, but pleasure kept them squeezed shut as she felt her assailant take her swollen clit into her mouth and suck, hard. "El," she moaned, dragging it out. "Baby what are you doing?"

"Gee, detective," Elliot cracked, sucking and licking at her core, "Can't you figure it out?" He chuckled as he pushed a finger into her to join his lips and tongue in their efforts to make Olivia cum. "I wanted a midnight snack. I chose you."

"Why?" Olivia groaned, her hand shooting to the back of his head.

Elliot bit lightly and pulled on her flesh, sucking and letting go. He worked his fingers hard, thrusting into her as he spoke. "Because I love the way you taste, the way you feel, and the way you look and sound when you cum, baby. We fell asleep. We had plans, and we fell asleep on the couch. I woke up, saw that all the kids had gone to bed, and thought, what better time to put those plans into action than now?" He bent his head again.

Olivia scratched at his scalp as he lapped up her steadily flowing juices. "Jesus, El. Oh, God," she mumbled. She moved her hand down grabbed his collar, and pulled him up, but he swatted her away.

"I'm not done," Elliot protested, licking at her again.

Olivia groaned from low and deep in her belly, bucking her hips into his hand and face. "I want you in me, baby. Now."

Elliot growled slightly, shaking his head as he worked her harder with his fingers and licked deeper. "I want this," he said, glaring up at her. "You can wait a few minutes."

Olivia's head flew back into the arm of the couch as she felt Elliot push another finger into her and thrust rapidly. "Oh, God, El," she whispered, gasping for air.

"Gimme what I want, Liv," Elliot demanded. "Cum, baby," he coached. He bit on her clit again, then sucked the nub into his mouth hard. He smirked as he felt her clamping around his fingers and he moaned as he got a mouthful of her release. He chuckled as he lapped at her and drank her in, loving every moment of her shaking beneath him. He pulled his fingers away from her, and moved up her body, sheathing his erection inside of her before she was even finished cumming, bringing on a second quick orgasm.

"Holy shit," Olivia said in a harsh whisper. Her arms moved up his body as her own vibrated beneath him.

"Fuck, yes, baby," Elliot panted. He began pumping, fast, deep, not giving his wife a chance to calm down, sending her into a fit of rolling, consecutive, endless orgasms.

"Oh, God," she croaked. "Elliot! Elliot, Elliot, Elliot," she repeated as he kept pumping, bringing her over again, her head thrashing, her nails digging into the flesh of his back.

"Liv, baby, you feel so fucking amazing," Elliot told her, panting and grunting. He pulled her up and wrapped an arm around her as he hit into her, bringing their lips together, kissing as they slammed into each other. "Liv, God, Liv," he moaned into the kiss. "I love you, baby. So much. So, so much."

Olivia, her hands now gripping the sides of his face, nodded and moaned quietly in high tones as her fourth and most powerful climax snuck up on her.

"Oh, fuck, baby," Elliot grunted, feeling her walls clench tighter around him. She pulsated and contracted and released all while keeping him locked in place, milking his orgasm. "Holy shit, Liv," he said through clenched teeth as his head dropped to hers and he spilled inside of her. He kissed her hungrily as he spurted into her, and as his own convulsions slowed, so did hers, and their kiss.

Olivia looked into his eyes. "Wow," she chuckled.

"Told you before," he said. "It'll just keep getting better. We've never had a bad experience together," he whispered, kissing her, "And we never will. I love you, baby."

"I love you, too, honey," Olivia replied. Then she laughed. "Ya know, she said, "If I wasn't pregnant, I guarantee I would be after that."

Elliot chuckled, gave her another hard, teasing thrust, and kissed her again. He pulled away and said, "You would have been knocked up by now anyway. I just can't control myself with you."

"You never have to," Olivia said, shifting away from him to get off of the couch. "One of the perks of marriage," she winked. "Come on, baby. We should actually go to bed."

Elliot adjusted himself and got up, then, too. "Yeah," he sighed. "We have a doctor's appointment before work."

"Which, thanks to your spontaneous sleep-sex, is now in less than four hours," Olivia chided playfully as they climbed the stairs. "Remind me to thank the kids for taking Josh up when we fell asleep."

Elliot kissed Olivia as, for the second time that night, he slipped out of his pants. He took off his shirt as he said, "That was Maureen. She's a good kid."

"They're all good kids," Olivia yawned, tossing the clothes that she and Elliot had discarded into the hamper. She moved over to the bed, climbed into it, and snuggled close to Elliot. "We have five really great kids."

"Six," Elliot whispered, wrapping her naked body in his arms, caressing her belly, and closing his eyes. He felt her wrap around him, and he smiled, falling asleep with her as close as possible.

* * *

"Leyla," the doctor said, squirting the cool, blue gel on Olivia's belly. "That's a beautiful name."

"We thought so," Elliot said, his hand wrapped in Olivia's, watching the monitor expectantly as nine-month old Josh slept in his stroller.

The doctor saw Elliot's face, chuckled, and turned on the monitor. "We're gonna take a look at your little girl, and then we're gonna do what's called a Four-D ultrasound. You'll get a fully dimensional image of your baby. You'll even be able to see her eyelashes."

"That sounds pretty cool," Elliot laughed. "Oh, my God, Liv, there she is!" he cried, squeezing her hand as the monitor brought the child into view.

The doctor recorded several moments and images, then switched machines. "This is the four-dimensional," he said, holding a larger scanner to Olivia's belly. "What you're about to see may shock you."

Olivia and Elliot watched the second screen, then both gasped when the image appeared.

"Liv," Elliot whispered, "She looks just like you."

"She looks so real," Olivia said, tears springing to her eyes.

The doctor laughed. "She _is_ real, Misses Stabler."

Olivia nodded, reaching out a finger to touch the screen. "You can see her so clearly! Every little feature, her lips, her little fingers. El, look, baby, she's..."

"It looks like she's praying," Elliot said with a teary sniffle.

Olivia nodded. "She's gorgeous," she whispered, looking at the screen, as if she were really looking at Leyla.

"Well," Elliot said, "I said she looked just like you." He laughed, kissing Olivia's forehead. "She's an active one, huh?" he said, as with the next pass of the scanner the baby had moved.

"You don't need to tell me," Olivia said, rolling her eyes. "I think she's gonna be a dancer. Oh, look! What's she doing? Ow!"

The doctor laughed. "You just watched your daughter kick you. And now," he said, moving the machine, "You're watching her grab the cord. Oh, uh, Mister and Misses Stabler, it looks like her first instinct is to use the left hand. It might change, of course, but then again it might not."

"We could have a little southpaw, Liv," Elliot said with a smirk. "Just another reason she's special."

They watched the doctor turn off the machine after hitting a series of buttons. "I've printed a series of images from both machines for you,  
he said. "Everything looks good, and in five months, you'll have your baby girl." He filled out something on Olivia's chart as he asked, "Is Josh walking yet?"

"He tries," Elliot said. "Ya know, he holds onto something, pulls himself up, takes a step, then wobbles and falls over. We're just letting him do his thing. No pressure."

The doctor smiled. "He's right on target," he said. "He should be up and running by the time you have this baby."

"We know," Olivia said. "We've got our work cut out for us. He will be a little over a year old when Leyla's born."

"A toddler and an infant at the same time," the doctor said. "That'll be hard."

"I've done it before," Elliot said, "And we have twins, so I'm no stranger to extreme parenting."

Olivia laughed. "That sounds like a reality show!" she chuckled. "I'm picturing you heating up bottles with a flamethrower and changing diapers on ice-skates."

Elliot laughed and kissed her. "Don't give me any ideas," he said, raising an eyebrow. He chuckled again. "Why don't we stop for ice cream on the way to work?" he asked. He helped Olivia off the table and took the printed ultrasound photos from the doctor.

Olivia grabbed the stroller and headed for the door. "That would be nice," she said, licking her lips.

"Nice?" Elliot scoffed. "Please, I know you and your cravings. If I don't get you ice cream before noon it's like you not having coffee on a regular non-pregnant day."

Olivia rolled her eyes and laughed, thanked the doctor, and left the office with Elliot's arms wrapping around her. "Do you believe that?" he asked in a whisper. "I feel like we really just saw her. It felt like I was looking at her, as if she was right in front of me," he said, still in shock. "And baby, she really does look exactly like you."

"That could change," Olivia said. "She's still develop..."

"I want her to look exactly like you," Elliot interrupted. "Josh looks like me, Leyla looks like you, Liv, we've got two perfect babies to join our other perfect kids."

Olivia kissed him, sighing as she pulled away. "You've given me the perfect life, haven't you?"

"Well," Elliot said, furrowing his brow, "If you take away the death-threats from the psychos we deal with, the crazy mothers we've had to deal with, your insane brother who keeps calling us, Stuckey trying to get us to play some weird game with him, my being haunted by Brian Cassidy for the rest of my life..."

"Elliot," Olivia said, softly, looking into his eyes.

Elliot gazed back into her beautiful brown ones, the ones he hoped Leyla, who so far was the spitting image of her mother, would have. "Yes," he said. "Our life is pretty damn perfect." He kissed her slowly, deeply, then pulled away to get Josh into the carseat.

The man watching them, narrowing his eyes and smirking, was plotting the many ways to take away their perfect life, and make it his own.

**A/N: Who's watching? Does Joshie finally take his first steps? And he says another interesting word! And maybe a little bit more lovin', on family Sunday! Next! If you want it, review here, or tell TMG212 on Twitter!**


	56. Chapter 56

**A/N: A short family Sunday. Josh says a new word. Someone's trying to weasel their way into the family. Apologies for the teeny, weeny chap. I didn't get much time to write, then FF failed and wouldn't let me upload for a while.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU, characters and locations. TStabler© owns this story. She shares it with you for your entertainment, enjoyment, and hopes that it will make you laugh, cry, think, hope, love and leave a review! Here, or follow me on Twitter. TMG212**

Olivia was in the kitchen, humming and flipping pancakes, made with Elliot's orgasmic homemade batter. Elliot walked in, yawning, and chuckled at the sight. "Olivia Benson, barefoot, pregnant, cooking...what is the world coming to?" he quipped, kissing her temple.

"Uh, the name's Stabler, I'm only barefoot because it's six in the morning on a Sunday, it's your fault I'm pregnant, and I didn't cook. I'm just frying the batter you mixed last night."

Elliot laughed. "All right, detective," he said, kissing her again. "Do you know how much I love you?"

"You'd give me the moon if you could," Olivia said, leaning back into him as she flipped a pancake.

"So you do know," Elliot whispered, kissing her. "Kids up?"

"Everyone but the baby," Olivia said. "They're getting ready for breakfast, Church, and whatever Daddy has planned for us."

Elliot smiled. "How does lunch with Don and Polly at Urie's sound?" he asked. "Then we can all go to the Central Park Zoo, possibly stop at the Met, they have that new exhibit you wanted to..."

"You had that dream again didn't you?" Olivia asked, interrupting him.

Elliot said. "Is it that obvious?"

"To me, yes. Baby, I can read you like a goddamned DD-Five. Stop beating yourself up over it, it was a long time ago, and you know, it wasn't the first time..."

"It was the first time I killed a man out of anger, Liv, and felt…okay. Yeah, my life and the lives of my family were threatened, but a part of me actually felt good about pulling that trigger. I actually enjoyed taking his life, and that scares me. I'm capable of killing someone like that..."

"When you're threatened," Olivia cut him off again. "You just said it. You never would have snapped like that if he hadn't...you didn't have a choice honey."

Elliot nodded. "I know," he said, sighing. "I keep telling myself that, but it doesn't stop me from reliving that moment every once in a while, with this incredible sense of pride and satisfaction, like a fucking lion that just successfully defended his lioness and his cubs."

Olivia smirked. "Baby, that is exactly what you were that night," she said. "What you are now, and what you always will be." She kissed him, and as the kiss deepened, Elliot skillfully reached out a hand and blindly, but perfectly, jerked the pan's handle and flipped the pancake, starting Sunday off right.

* * *

After a delicious breakfast and a moderately inspirational church service, the Stablers piled into their SUV and drove into Midtown to meet Cragen, Polly and their son. Urie's, the restaurant they chose, was a deli-style eatery, serving sandwiches as big as your face with a pound of fries a bucket of cole slaw and a half-a-dozen pickles. They walked into the place, instantly spotting the beaming faces of Polly and Cragen, who ran over to hug all of them. Elliot looked around, curious. Cragen's son was noticeably absent. "He's working," Cragen said. "Couldn't get away."

Elliot nodded, a bit relieved. Something never sat right where he was concerned. Elliot always had a funny feeling about him. They sat around a very large table, feeling slightly over-dressed in their Church-going outfits, and picked up menus.

Olivia and Elliot, however, knew what they wanted. A spikey haired waiter with thick-rimmed glasses ran over. "Detectives Benson, Stabler, the usual?" he asked?

Olivia smiled and nodded. "No coffee for me though."

"Obviously," the kid said, laughing and gesturing to Olivia's slightly protruding belly. "And for everyone else?"

Cragen looked at Polly and she nodded. "We're gonna split the sampler, and can we have two large Cokes?"

"Sure," the kid said. "Kids?"

Maureen tapped her chin as she ordered a slightly healthy tuna club. Kathleen asked for a chef's salad with everything on the side. The twins ordered identical roast beef and swiss sandwiches with fries, then accused each other of stealing the other's idea.

Elliot wrapped his arms around Olivia and pulled her chair closer to his. That's when the person who had been following them all day had decided to approach them.

"Hey," the man said, "Can I, uh, sit with you guys?"

Elliot looked over and rolled his eyes. Olivia tried to smile politely. "Sure, Chester," she said, because she wasn't ruse, and he was a colleague after all.

Lake tried to drag a chair into the space between Olivia and Lizzie, but Cragen, thankfully, called him over to his side of the table. "Lake," he said, "There's more room over here, and that way you won't be practically invading the family space over there." He laughed, but he knew that that, maybe, that's what he had just prevented.

"Right," Lake said, nodding. "So this is the rest of the Stabler clan," he said, looking around. "You two made some cute kids."

"Oh, yeah," Elliot said, stopping Olivia before she could correct him, like he knew she would. "We did. And we're still making them," he added, caressing her bump.

"I see that," Lake said, eyeing Olivia up and down, something Elliot didn't like flashing in his eyes. He leaned over, and lowered his voice, so only Olivia and Elliot could hear him. "You are definitely a MILF, Benson, and Stabler, you are one lucky son of a bitch."

"Stabler," Olivia said. "When I'm not working, which I'm not, it's Stabler."

"And yeah," Elliot said, nodding. "I'm aware of how lucky I am. Thanks."

Lake leaned back, taking a sip of his beer. "Just stating the facts," he said.

Everyone moved out of the way as the waiter brought the food, setting one very large pastrami sandwich platter down in front of Olivia and Elliot. They were sharing, clearly.

"Enjoy," the waiter said, passing out the rest of the meals.

As everyone got their food, and began to eat, a loud, clear noise was heard from Josh's stroller.

Olivia stopped mid-chew.

Elliot froze as his eyes widened.

Everyone was silent hoping the baby would do it again.

He did.

"Eat!" he squealed, loudly, waving his little arms and giggling at his parents as they ate their sandwich.

Elliot bent over to look at his son and laughed. "Yeah, bud," he said. "We're eating. You hungry? Huh?"

Olivia joined him, holding out a fry to the little guy. "Does Mommy's bug boy want a French fry?" she cooed, waving the crinkle-cut at him.

Josh's little arm stretched out, taking it from her. "Eat!" he yelled. "Eat, eat, eat!" he said to a beat, waving the fry. Then he stuck it in his mouth, made a shocked face, then laughed.

"He likes it, baby!" Elliot laughed, taking Josh's other hand. "God, honey, he's getting big."

"He's only nine months old, El," Olivia said. "Don't go making plans for college, just yet. Besides, we've got another one coming, so…"

Elliot laughed, cutting her off. "We're always gonna have one in diapers. As long as we can. You know that, don't you?"

Olivia chuckled. "I don't think we can possibly help it. You're mom was the youngest of twelve, your dad was one of sixteen, you're one of seven, I have to face facts. I am now Irish Catholic."

"Yeah," Elliot said, still gazing into his French fry eating child's eyes. "That you are, honey."

Olivia chuckled, shoving the sandwich into his mouth. She gave him a pastrami flavored kiss, unaware that someone at the table was glaring at them, fully intent on, not ripping them apart, but making them suffer. Both of them.

He came to a realization, watching them. They were indestructible, they were a unit. And whatever they went through, they had to do it together.

**A/N: What's Lake gonna do, or try to do? Where was Cragen's son? What will a new case bring for them, and what's up with Fin and Casey? Again, sorry for the short chapter. On vaycay, doing what I can. Review, or tweet. TMG212 on Twitter. **


	57. Chapter 57

**A/N: Where was Cragen's son? What is he hiding? Who else comes into the picture, and will they be a friend or foe? If you've been reading carefully, you knew this was unavoidable.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks**

"He's talking, El," Olivia said, yawning as she tried to find a comfortable position. "Our baby's talking."

Elliot nodded as he yanked the "s"-shaped, body-length pillow away from Olivia. "He is," he said, stifling a yawn of his own. He held up the pillow and shook it at her. "This fucking thing is not...just...no." He tossed the monstrosity to the other side of the room.

Olivia protested as she tried to scoot forward and get up. "El, it's supposed to..."

Elliot interrupted her. "It takes up half the damn bed, it doesn't make you any more comfortable than you are without it, and with Josh you just used me. What's wrong with me?" he asked, hurt.

"I almost broke one of your ribs because I kept punching you, trying to make you soft and fluffy," Olivia said, smirking.

Elliot worked his way underneath Olivia, shoving one leg between hers, wrapping an arm around her and turning her on her side. He placed her head on his chest and said, "Did I complain?"

Olivia sighed. "No," she whispered. "You took it like a man," she chuckled.

"Honey, you're pregnant," Elliot said, stating the very obvious and kissing her forehead. "If twisting us together like a damn pretzel and dealing with you treating me like a punching bag so you can sleep comfortably is what I have to do, I'm all for it." He kissed her again and looked at her. "You have a headache."

Olivia scoffed. "How the hell did..."

Elliot reached over and turned off the lamp as he interrupted her. "Your eyes get foggy and you squint." He moved his hand to her head and rubbed her temples, easing the tension as she wrapped herself around him and squeezed. Elliot chuckled. "I'd like to see your fucking pillow do this," he mumbled, kissing her closed eyelids. "I'm better than a goddamn pillow," he grumbled, sounding like an arrogant child.

Olivia smiled as she sighed, losing herself in his touch and letting go of the pain. "You're the best pillow in the world, El," she whispered, dragging her lips lightly over his chest. "I love you."

"I love you, too, honey," Elliot said, still rubbing away the pain, closing his eyes, and inhaling the scent of his wife, partner, friend. His Olivia. He smiled as his breathing slowed and his fingers stopped moving, and she wrapped herself tighter around him. She sighed in comfort, and as she drifted to sleep in his arms, she made a mental note. Who needed a maternity pillow when you had a husband like Elliot?

* * *

David Cragen, camera in hand, tried to get a solid shot, but the curtains were closed and the zoom lens wasn't exactly capable of photographing through fabric. "Damn it," he muttered to himself. He picked up his radio and said, "Lost visual," with a hefty grunt. He put the camera down and drove around to the other side of the street, the other side of the house. "Nothing to do now but wait," he said to himself, sipping his coffee. "Come on, Lake. Try it," he said with a smirk, though no one could hear him. He looked down at his radio, questioning his partner's motives behind this, and he grabbed the device. "Hey. Question. Why are you over there, and I'm over here?"

In another car, in front of a beautiful townhouse on the upper east side, Dean Porter clicked the button on his own radio. "You know me, Dave. When I work, I need to enjoy the view." He smiled as he gazed through his binoculars, looking at a peacefully sleeping Olivia. "And what a beautiful view this is. You just make sure Chester Lake stays put." He sighed as he put his radio down, and looked back at Olivia. She was stirring. Something was waking her up. He frowned as he watched her unravel herself from Elliot, waking him up, too. She said something to Elliot and Porter suddenly whished he had paid more attention in Quantico when they tried to teach him how to read lips.

He watched Elliot get up with her, taking her by the hand and leading her into the bathroom. He followed them with his binoculars, watching as he held Olivia's hair back, gently rubbing her back and her neck, her shoulders, placing loving kisses to the back of her head as she got sick. Dean shook his head. "Shit, Stabler. Knocked her up, again?" he mumbled. He watched as Elliot filled a cup with water, handing it down to Olivia as he flushed the toilet, then lowered the seat.

He watched Elliot sit, pull Olivia onto his lap, and held her as she rinsed her mouth and brushed her teeth. When she was calm and feeling better, Elliot took her hand again, led her back into the bedroom, and back into the bed. Dean laughed as he watched them struggle to get comfortable again, and he sighed when the did. "Sleep tight, guys," he muttered, sipping his coffee. "No one's gonna hurt you while I'm out here."

He kept his promise, keeping a watchful eye out for them well into the morning. He watched them shower, get the kids off to school, and head out to work. He tailed them to the station, ensuring the David was following Lake, and parked across the street. Waiting was tough, but what happened at eleven-forty-five made it worth it.

Dean's eyes widened as Alex, Casey, and Olivia emerged from the precinct in workout clothes. His jaw dropped. Olivia looked stunning. Pregnant or not, he still found her incredibly gorgeous. His mood was ruined, though, as Elliot ran out of the doors, pulling her into his arms.

* * *

"Wow," Casey said, folding her arms over her own baby-belly. "Should I get the hose?"

Elliot shook his head, though his lips were still firmly attached to Olivia's. He pulled away from her, smiling. "Don't..."

"I'm only gonna be gone for a half-an-hour, El," Olivia said, chuckling. "The place is right across the street, and it's our lunch hour anyway. Go grab a sandwich with your new pal Chester."

Elliot rolled his eyes. "Please," he said. "Go work that hot ass of yours into some unimaginable positions and get back over here before I do something stupid."

"Will do," Olivia said, kissing him quickly. She winked at him and walked with the girls across the street to the yoga studio.

Elliot sighed and walked back into the station doors, running up the stairs to the unit. He nearly barreled over David as he ran a hand down his face and walked through the doors to the squadroom.

"Woah, Stabler," David yelled, stepping out of the way just in time.

Elliot looked up. "Sorry. Dave? What...what are you doing here?"

"Oh, uh, just...hangin' out," David lied. "Where's Olivia?"

"Yoga," Elliot said, walking over to the coffee corner. He poured himself a mug and looked at the bowl of fresh fruit his father kept stocked for Olivia. "She and Alex told Casey they would go with her to this maternity yoga thing, since Alex goes with her to kickboxing twice a week."

"Kickboxing?" David said, wide-eyed.

Elliot chuckled. "My baby is one tough momma," he said, biting into an apple.

As if on cue, Ed Tucker walked in with a scowl on his face. "Okay, one, that's Olivia's, two, why the hell did I just get a phone call from Paul Devlin at the FBI?"

Elliot, with his mouth full, said, "I can eat one of my wife's goddamned apples. You bought, like, fifty of them. And I don't know. The only person anyone in the unit even talks to in the FBI is Agent Porter, and he hasn't been back around here since the wedding."

"Well," Tucker began, rolling his eyes as Elliot took another bite out of his apple, "I need to talk to Cragen." He eyed David for a moment and said, "Don, not Dave."

"Office," Elliot said, jutting his chin, in mid-chew, toward Cragen's door. "Seriously, Dad, it's an apple." He rolled his eyes and walked to his desk, catching Chester Lake giving him a narrow-eyed look. "What?"

Chester shrugged. "Yoga and kickboxing, while she's pregnant?"

Elliot nodded, sipped his coffee, and picked up a stack of files. "Doctor said it's fine if she doesn't overdo it. She keeps it light, low-impact. She's a cop, and she's very proud of her body. She bounced back fast after Josh, without really doing anything to stay in shape. This time, she..." he paused, thinking. "Why are you still here?"

"Staying to help out when you and Olivia take off to have your kid," Chester said, nodding at him with a smirk. "Maybe even longer."

Munch sat at his desk shaking his head. "Don't bet on it. That desk...it doesn't stay occupied for long. Besides, the four of us have it pretty much covered, and we have a lot of uniforms and other detectives in this unit." He handed a cup of coffee to Fin and rolled his shoulders. "Once they come back, we won't need you, Lake."

Tucker opened Cragen's door, walking out, and glaring once again at his son who was now eating one of the banana's provided for Olivia. He walked over and slapped him in the head.

"Fruit," Elliot said, irritated. "It's fruit. This is Manhattan, Dad. I will go next door, and buy her more! Calm the hell down! She doesn't even like bananas!"

Tucker made a face at Elliot, then turned toward Cragen.

Cragen folded his arms and sighed, looking at his son. "Fin, Lake, you've got a vic at Saint Mary's. David. My office. Now." He glanced at Chester, then to Elliot. "You too, Stabler."

Elliot took another bite of his banana and rose out of his seat, confused. "What the hell did I do?"

"Nothing," Tucker said, biting his bottom lip. "I have to go get Olivia." He walked out of the squadroom before Elliot could stop him.

Elliot tossed the peel into the bin and walked into Cragen's office, taking a deep breath as he sat in the leather chair, waiting for someone to say something. "What's this about?" he asked, tapping his fingers on the armrest.

David moved, not saying anything, but pulling the badge out of his pocket. He gave Elliot a look and shrugged, then glanced at his father. Elliot looked at them both, waiting for an explanation. One that would only come when Tucker came back with Olivia, and Dean Porter.

**A/N: Porter? Is he going to be a good guy? Bad guy? His involvement might surprise you ;) If you want to review, do. If you don't, no pressure. But thanks for reading! Leave one here, or follow TMG212 on Twitter :) **


	58. Chapter 58

**A/N: What do Porter and Dave have to say? What are the feds doing watching Lake? And Olivia might be coming down with something, at the same time her cravings kick in. A restless afternoon for Elliot lies ahead. Does he mind?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks**

Olivia was sitting on the same chair as Elliot in Cragen's office, his arms were wrapped around her, and they were both eyeballing Dean Porter as if he had a contagious disease.

"You could have told us," Elliot said, glaring sideways at Porter. "Called me, texted Liv. Something. Friends don't let..."

"Elliot, if I could have, I would have. I didn't want you two to panic," Porter said. "She's pregnant. This is the last thing she needs. And you get worked up if you think people are looking at you funny, so knowing you have a dirty cop in your unit, who now has his sights set on destroying your family, that would have turned you into the fucking Hulk."

"I like it when he turns into the Hulk," Olivia said, her hormones controlling her speech. She let out a soft, quiet sneeze and said, "But thanks for considering our feelings."

Dean nodded. "That's what friends do," he said, biting into Elliot's earlier thought.

"What exactly does Lake want?" Elliot said, brushing Olivia's hair back. He noticed she felt a bit warm, but he chalked it up to her just getting back from yoga.

Dave spoke up. "He transferred in, outwardly, to help with a case. But he wanted to sink his claws in and discover SVU's dirty little secrets. He was planning to read files, hijack open cases and solve them himself, steal evidence...then he found out you two were married, with a family, and he decided to break up the unit that way. Hit 'em where it hurts by trying to hurt you."

"You gonna go out there and do something about it when he gets back?" Elliot asked. Olivia sneezed again and he said, "Bless you, baby."

Olivia nodded her thanks and dropped her head to his shoulder.

"Can't," Dave said. "No evidence. We've been watching him, and we know what he's been doing. We just can't prove it."

"One thing's clear," Cragen said, "Olivia, your maternity leave starts now. I don't want you around Lake. You two, home. Porter will be sitting on the house, Dave's watching Chester. Go home. Stay there."

Elliot didn't need to be told twice. "Come on, honey," he said, tugging Olivia up. She sneezed again. "Liv, are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah," Olivia said, nodding. "I think it's Dean's cologne."

"I'm not wearing any," Porter said, tilting his head.

Olivia shot him a glare. "Then maybe I'm just allergic to you," she teased. She took Elliot's hand and he led her out of the office. They stopped up in the cribs, taking Josh out of his playpen and thanking Polly for watching him, then walked out of the squadroom, out of the precinct, followed by Porter. Olivia sneezed the whole way home, in five minute intervals, until her nose stuffed up altogether. "Wonderful," she griped.

"You're getting a cold," Elliot said, parking the car in the driveway. "Honey, how could possibly have gotten a..."

"Lake," Olivia said, in a low, throaty voice, that turned Elliot on even though it probably shouldn't have. "Didn't he tell us he was just getting over a cold on Sunday?"

"That bastard," Elliot huffed. He got out of the car, then walked around to help Olivia. She waited and watched as he took Josh out of the back, in his carrier, and held him in one hand, taking her arm in the other. "The second we get in, you're getting changed and you're going right to..."

"I want pancakes," Olivia said suddenly.

Elliot raised an eyebrow. "Right now?" he asked. He chuckled when Olivia nodded giving him the puppy eyes he couldn't resist. "Okay, so you get into bed, and I'll make you pancakes." He practically carried her into the house and up to their room. They walked into the nursery, putting the sleeping baby into his crib. They walked back into their bedroom and Elliot eased Olivia onto the bed. He stripped her slowly, treasuring the moment. "Wait here," he said, moving to the dresser. He chose a silky nightgown for her and tossed it next to her, then left her naked on the bed as he walked into the bathroom. He heard her moan and cough.

"What are you doing?" she called groggily.

"One second, baby," he called back. He returned to her with a little blue jar, unscrewing it, the powerful aroma hitting him hard. He stuck his finger in the vaseline-like goop and scooped up a nickel sized dollop, then rubbed his hands together. He then smoothed his hands over Olivia's bare chest, rubbing the Vicks VapoRub over her upper body.

Olivia moaned. The aromatics hit her nose, enabling shallow breaths, and the tingles were helping to clear her chest. Not to mention Elliot's hands on her body, rubbing, caressing, were driving her mad with desire. Sneezing, coughing, tired desire. "El," she groaned, "Baby, what are you doing?"

"I'm enjoying this," Elliot chuckled, rubbing the mentholated cream in well. "He dropped his head and kissed her as he reached for the nightgown he'd pulled out for her. He pulled away and slid the fabric over her body, then lifted her up to a sitting position, kissing her again. "Stay here, I'll be back with your pancakes in a few minutes."

Olivia watched him leave, taking a deep breath. The medicated rub on her chest was already working, and she loved Elliot all the more for not even waiting to be asked before taking care of her.

She heard the clanging of pans, the rustling of things, opening and closing of drawers, and she heard him humming their wedding song as he cooked. The song still held true, she was so lucky she was in love with her best friend, and he was in love with her, and they had an amazing life together. She leaned back on the headboard, pulling the blanket over her, and her eyes closed.

"Liv," Elliot's voice called to her softly a few minutes later. "Liv, baby, wake up."

Olivia opened her eyes and smiled at him. "Didn't mean to fall asleep," she said, sounding like a frog. Her nose was clear and she could breathe, but her throat had dried out and felt scratchy.

Elliot must have known that was going to happen because he placed the tray of pancakes in front of her and next to it was a cup of decaffeinated peppermint tea. "Baby safe and better for you than throat spray," he said, kissing her nose and handing her the mug. He brushed her hair back and said, "You felt warm before, but you don't now."

Olivia sipped her tea, instantly feeling the soothing of her throat. "I love you," she said in a whisper, looking at him.

Elliot smiled, cutting into the stack of pancakes. He jabbed a bit of them with a fork and held it out to her. "I love you, too," he said, his voice warm and mellow. He watched her eyes roll back and her lips curled as she moaned softly. "Good?" he asked, smirking.

"You still got it," Olivia said, opening her mouth, asking for more.

Elliot laughed. "I told you, baby, sex and pancakes. Anytime, anywhere. I love that face," he said, suppressing a moan of his own as he watched her lick her lips.

Olivia chewed, enjoying every second, and swallowed. "I remember the first time you made these for me," she said hoarsely with a sniffle.

"It was either pancakes or starve," Elliot said, laughing. "You had one egg, a cup of milk that was about to expire, and an unopened container of flour."

"You didn't have to cook," Olivia said shrugging.

Elliot fed her more pancakes, his own eyes rolling back as he watched her face contort in pleasure. "Damn, Liv, this is not supposed to be erotic," he said with a chuckle. "And I wanted to make you breakfast. We technically spent the night together, it was the start of our relationship, and I wanted to do something nice."

"You created a monster," Olivia said, chewing and cuddling closer to him.

"A monster," Elliot said, holding the fork just out of reach, watching her struggling to reach for it, teasing her, "That can't get enough of me or my pancakes. Two things which are not going to be running out any time soon, so..." he laughed and kissed her, then gave her the pancakes on the fork.

Olivia chewed, swallowed, then sipped her tea, eyeing Elliot. She smirked as she dropped the mug, then moved the lap tray to the floor beside the bed. "Craving number one, successfully satisfied."

"Number one?" Elliot asked, surprised. "Oh, no. No way, Liv. You can't still be hungry, I'm not going out right now and getting you a chimichanga!"

Olivia laughed and slid down the headboard, laying flat on the bed. "I'm having a problem breathing, I sound like a frog, I smell like a hospital waiting room, and I've got a tiny person leaning on my bladder. I'm exhausted, and I'm full of pancakes, and I'm probably the most unattractive thing in the world right now. But the only thing..."

Elliot's lips were on hers in seconds, cutting off her sentence. He knew he'd get sick, but when a pregnant Olivia had a craving, it was his job to make sure she got what she wanted. He kissed her deeply, tasting the tang of the mint tea and the sweet syrup and salty butter of the pancakes. He pulled away slowly and looked into her eyes. "You look beautiful," he said. "More beautiful than I've ever seen you. And you get more beautiful the longer I look at you. That's our daughter leaning on your bladder, Liv. Our daughter. You smell amazing, because underneath that medicine-y, menthol smell, you still smell like lavender and vanilla and Olivia. You sound so sexy, which I know sounds odd, but you do. And I can't really breath right now either, because whenever we're like this, about to make love, alone, so close, you take my breath away."

That did it. She pulled him back down, assaulting his lips, making her tongue dance with his. She ran her hands down his back, murmuring "I love you" against his lips over and over. She rushed to get his clothes off, knowing they didn't have much time until the kids came home from school.

Elliot tugged off her nightgown and tossed it over the side of the bed and he looked down at her. "I love you, too, baby," he said with a smirk. He dropped his head and kissed her again, nudging her legs apart with his knee.

Olivia moaned as he pushed into her, lower and more throaty than usual. Elliot growled in response, loving that knew sound, and moved deeper. Olivia gripped his back and she arched into him, satisfying the only other thing she'd been craving.

* * *

Porter, watching the house, but not them, dialed Dave's number. "Hey, it's me. Munch and Lake back yet? Okay, tell Munch to get to Trinity Prep as fast as he can. I just realized something. We don't have anyone watching the kids."

**A/N: Is Lake going after the kids? How bad does Olivia's cold get, and does Elliot catch it? Casey gets into a bit of trouble, and Alex give Munch a big surprise. Joshie says a new word, but where on Earth did he learn it? Next! If you want it, of course. =) Thank you for reading, and if you'd like to leave a review, do so here or follow TMG212 on Twitter. **


	59. Chapter 59

**A/N: Is Lake going after the kids? How bad does Olivia's cold get, and does Elliot catch it? Joshie says a new word, but where on Earth did he learn it?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf owns SVU and characters, but he certainly didn't create 'em like this. TStabler© did. Story and contents belong to her. Thanks.**

"Hey, Dickie," Fin said, slamming his car door and walking toward the young Stabler. "Where are your sisters?"

"They're coming," Dickie said. "Why are you picking us up? We usually walk."

Fin chuckled. "Your mom's got a cold, and she's home with your dad, so they just want you guys home as fast as possible so you can eat and she can go to bed," he lied. "Yo! Stablers!" he yelled, seeing the girls walk out of the school doors. "Over here."

"Uncle Fin?" Maureen asked, walking over to his car. "Oh, God! Did something happen to Mom or Dad?"

Fin rolled his eyes. "No," he said. "I'm just driving ya home. Get in."

The kids got into the green sedan as Fin looked around. He saw Lake, standing on the sidewalk looking irritated, and he shook his head. "Not on your life, pal," he spat, then got into the car to take the kids home.

* * *

Olivia fluttered her eyes open as she felt Elliot's hands rubbing her chest again. "El," she croaked, "What are you doing?"

"Shh," Elliot shushed, "Go back to sleep. I'm just reapplying your Vicks, so you can breathe."

Olivia moaned as he eyes closed again. "How did you know my nose stuffed up again?" she asked, reaching for his head, brushing her fingers through his hair.

Elliot chuckled and said, "You were snoring. You only snore when you can't breathe through your nose." He rubbed over her chest and her shoulders and he heard her moan. "Better?" he asked, gazing down at her.

Olivia felt too good to move and simply said, "God, yes." She took a deep breathe to prove her point.

Elliot chuckled and he pulled down her shirt, over the medicated skin, and he cuddled close to her. He kissed the side of her head and said, "Oh, shit, baby. You're warm again. How do you feel?"

Olivia snuggled closer to him, wrapping her arms around one of his. "Fine," she mumbled. Then she sneezed, thanking her reflexes for getting her hand over her nose before Elliot got a sneezey spray.

"Bless you," Elliot said softly, brushing her hair back. "I can't give you anything for fever, honey. Nothing is baby-safe," he laughed.

"It's okay," Olivia muttered, her face burying itself in Elliot's chest. "I'm fine. You smell so good," she groaned, pulling him tighter, holding him.

"I smell like sweat and Vicks," Elliot scoffed, but he held her closer, too.

"You smell like you," Olivia mumbled, nuzzling his chest.

Elliot laughed. He kissed the crown of her head and closed his eyes. "I love you," he whispered.

Olivia coughed lightly as she said, "I love you, too."

"Baby, you know how you have crazy dreams when you're pregnant?" Elliot asked, kissing her head again.

Olivia mumbled, "Uh-huh."

"Well, uh, I think I'm having sympathy nightmares. I had a weird dream last night," Elliot said, running his hand through her hair.

Something in his voice made Olivia pop her head up, she looked at him, scooted up, and asked, "About what?"

"Us," Elliot said, looking into her eyes. "We weren't married, at least, not to each other, and every time I tried to tell you that I loved you, you gave me a warning look and walked away. It was like we were back...before that kiss in your sink. I actually felt...Liv, this dream, it broke my heart."

"It was just a dream," Olivia said, brushing her thumb over his cheek.

Elliot scooted up, sitting beside her. "It felt so real, and when I woke up, with you in my arms, and I looked around our room, this...this felt like a dream," he told her. "My dream felt real and my life felt like a goddamned dream." He tilted his head and asked, "Does that make any sense?"

Olivia nodded. "Perfect sense," she said, intertwining her fingers with his. "I think...because this is the life you've always dreamed of, and even after almost two years of living it, I can't believe it's real any more than you can."

"Liv, baby, I..." Elliot was cut off with the sound of his son crying. He and Olivia both looked at the monitor, then each other, then the door. They got out of the bed, together, and walked into the nursery. They both walked over to Josh's crib, looking down at him.

Josh looked up, his lower lip quivering, and said, "Mama! Dada!" He waved his little arms in the air, and he said, "Up! Up!"

Olivia looked at Elliot, then reached down to pick up her son. "Joshie, sweetie, it's okay," she cooed, brushing her hand over the little boy's head and back. She moved closer to Elliot, and he, too, began to comfort the panicking baby.

"Mommy and Daddy got you, sweet boy," Elliot said, kissing Josh's forehead. "I wonder what's wrong with him," he said. "We fed him, I just changed him, do you think something scared..."

"No!" Josh yelled, interrupted his father. "No, no, no!"

"He just said 'no,' El," Olivia said, shocked, smiling.

"No? No, what, buddy?" Elliot asked, caressing the boy's cheek. "Nothing scared you?"

Josh brought his hand to his mouth and bit his little fist, snuggling into his mother's arms and closing his eyes.

"He is too damn cute," Elliot said, laughing. "I think this means we have to take him into the bed with us."

Olivia laughed and let Elliot wrap her and Josh in his arms. "How did he learn the word 'No?" she asked. "We don't yell at him or the kids, and we don't..."

"You don't think he can hear us at work, do you? I mean the bunkroom walls are very thin," he said with a chuckle. "We almost got caught a few times." He kissed her head, and he seethed. "You're still hot," he whispered to her.

"You'd better say that even when I'm all old and wrinkly," Olivia joked. "Take him," she said, suddenly, handing Josh to Elliot. She ran out of the nursery and into the bathroom.

"Aw, honey!" Elliot yelled sympathetically. "You're still getting morning sickness, and now you have a cold, baby, I'm so sorry."

He was answered with a flush and the sound of the front door opening and closing. "Dad!" Maureen yelled up the stairs. "Mom?"

"Yeah, honey," Elliot yelled down, moving out of the nursery. He met live in the hallway and gave her a sad smile. He kissed her quickly as they walked down the steps.

"Fin," Olivia said, surprised. "What are you doing here?" She sneezed, then coughed, then moaned.

"Hey, little Stabler," Fin said, looking at Dickie, "Go get your mother some juice and a tissue."

Dickie gave Fin an odd look, then shrugged heading into the kitchen.

"You guys," Fin said, "Order Chinese, and get soup for the sick Baby-Girl."

"Uncle Fin," Lizzie said, "If you want us out of the room, all you have to do is say so."

"I want you outta the room," Fin said, raising an eyebrow.

Everyone laughed as the girls walked into the kitchen to order dinner. Elliot wrapped an arm around Olivia and kept the baby in between them, asking, "What's up, Fin?"

"Lake," Fin said. "He was hangin' out outside the kids school. He didn't try anythin', he just watched 'em." He cleared his throat and said, "Look, uh, I got Case home, too, so...when I can, I'll pick up the kids. When I can't, Munch'll do it."

"Fin," Elliot said, smiling at his friend. "Thanks, man, but we can pick up our own kids, we're gonna be home. Did Lake get..."

"No," Fin said. "And the kids had no idea that anything was wrong, so they're cool."

Elliot nodded, then said, "You know Porter's outside, so you don't need to stay. Go home to Casey, man. She needs you. She having any weird dreams yet?"

"Oh, yeah," Fin laughed. "Well, if you need me, I'll be here. And, uh, Casey wants to know if you'll go back to that yoga class with her next week, Baby-Girl."

Olivia smiled and nodded. "Tell her as long as this cold goes away..."

"No!" Josh yelled, wagging his arm in the air.

Elliot, Olivia, and Fin looked down at the boy, laughing. "You'll be going, too, little man," Elliot said, then he watched in awe as the tot closed his eyes again.

"Aw, someone's a little momma's boy," Fin said, smiling at Josh.

"He loves his Daddy, too," Olivia said, her nose stuffy. "I'm gonna take a hot bath before the food gets here," she moaned, giving the baby to Elliot. She leaned up and kissed him, thanked Fin again, and walked up the stairs.

Elliot nodded at Fin, and said, "Thanks for everything, man. Really."

"You guys are my family," he said. "I'd do anything for you." He slapped Elliot on the shoulder then walked out of the house.

Elliot walked over to the door, weaving at Dean in his car. He saw Dean wave back, set the alarm, and called Maureen back into the living room. "Honey, take your brother for a while. If he wakes up, there's a bottle in the fridge, warm it up and..."

"I know, Daddy," Maureen said, smiling as she took the baby into her arms.

Elliot kissed his daughter on the cheek, then looked up the stairs as he climbed them, with a wicked smirk on his face. Olivia's bath was about to get a lot hotter.

**A/N: Oh, boy! How hot? When Fin gets home, ****Casey gets into a bit of trouble, and Alex gives Munch a big surprise. And do they finally nail Lake? At the kids school? Wanna know? Review here, or on Twitter: TMG212**


	60. Chapter 60

**A/N: How hot does Olivia's bath get? When Fin gets home, Casey gets into a bit of trouble, and Alex gives Munch a big surprise. And it's CHAPTER 60! That means it's audience participation time! Leave a comment with a line you would like a character to say, and it'll happen!**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf, genius, owns SVU and its characters. TStabler©, fan of genius, owns this story, the narrative, the dialogue, and everything but the characters.**

Elliot walked up the stairs, slowly, and gently eased the bathroom door open. Olivia wasn't kidding when she said she was taking a hot bath; the steam rose fast and hit Elliot in the face. He waved a hand and chuckled. "Liv, honey?" he called.

Olivia moaned in response and coughed, "Yeah?"

"How are you feeling?" Elliot asked, closing the door and taking off his tee-shirt. He slid down his sweatpants, glad his wife's eyes were closed.

"A little bit better," Olivia said, sniffling.

Elliot smirked as he placed one foot in the tub. "Well, I hope I can make you feel a lot better," he said, easing down into the hot water.

Olivia's eyes opened and her head popped up. "What are you doing in here?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

Elliot splashed over to her and pulled her into his arms. "I am spending quality time with my sick, pregnant wife." He kissed her neck and picked up the bath sponge. He squeezed it out and squirted some of her lavender soap onto it. He inhaled and smiled. It was her scent. He kissed her neck again, and starting at her shoulders, rubbed in circles, watching the foam form.

"Feels so good," Olivia whispered, her head falling backward onto his shoulder.

Elliot chuckled as he moved lower, washing his wife with great care. "Feeling better now?"

"Better now," Olivia said with a smile. "Much better."

Elliot suckled on her neck, whispering, "Good. That was my plan," as he dropped the sponge and his fingers trailed down her body.

"I think you just wanna take advantage of my weakened state," Olivia joked, moaning lightly at his touch. "I can't fight you off."

"You wouldn't even if you could," Elliot said with a low chuckle. His hands slid down her body, coming to rest on her upper thighs. He kissed her neck again, his fingers drawing circles on her skin, traveling closer to where she found herself wanting him more with each passing moment.

"El," she groaned, dropping her head back further into him, her own hands skimming over his legs at her sides. "God, you drive me nuts, you know that?"

Elliot laughed and nipped at her left ear. "I know it," he whispered to her. He slid one hand over just a bit and he felt her tense up, heard her gasp, then she relaxed into him as he slid two fingers gently up her folds. His other arm wrapped around her waist, holding her close and his fingers drug up and down, teasing.

Olivia's fingers dug into Elliot's thighs. She felt him, hard and strong, as he leaned further back into him, He groaned in her ear, earning a moan in return, as he pushed one of his exploring fingers into her. Olivia's hips bucked slightly, making her lower back rub against Elliot, and they both moaned. "Honey," she said, softly and almost pleading, "move."

Elliot, knowing what she meant, eased to his right, his finger slowly moving in and out of Olivia. He turned her around, to face him, and linked their legs as he pulled her close. His head flew back when Olivia's hand wrapped around his shaft, and he moaned a little louder when she began stroking. He pushed another finger into her, moving faster, and moved forward to capture her lips as they gripped and grasped at each other. Elliot growled lightly and slid forward, pushing Olivia's hands away from him as he sheathed himself inside of her.

Their lips caught each other's mutual cries, they moved faster and harder against each other, the hot water lapping at their skin in waves. Elliot found himself holding her tighter, kissing her madly as they frantically fed on each other and moved in perfect sync in the tub.

"Oh, shit," Elliot gasped, feeling Olivia clamp around him tight. It had happened faster than he had anticipated, but it was a welcome surprise. "God, Liv, baby," he moaned harshly, gritting his teeth.

Olivia's head dripped forward, she kissed Elliot as she tried not to scream, and she shook viciously. She gripped his neck and rode him, tightening more and more, not ready to stop.

Elliot was breathing heavy and grunted as he hit into her twice more before erupting inside of her with a harsh cry into her mouth.

They slowed their movements to an easy stop, still kissing, still breathing each other in. When they stopped completely, they pulled apart and held each other's gaze for a moment. Olivia smiled at her husband. He smiled warmly back at her. And then he sneezed. They laughed and Elliot rolled his eyes. "It was bound to happen," he said.

They dried and dressed, then walked down the stairs, both coughing. "We are quite the pair, huh?" Elliot said, turning over his shoulder.

Olivia laughed. "Just stay away from the kids, El. The last thing we need is five sick children in the house."

"Yeah," Elliot said with a wide-eyed shudder, thinking about it.

The door bell rang, and Elliot walked over to the door, looking through it. "Really? he asked, rolling his eyes. He pulled open the door and said, "Dean, why are you delivering our food?"

"No one else is coming up these steps. Unless I know them, they get stopped on the sidewalk. You owe me fifty bucks, by the way."

Elliot coughed into his hand then asked, "Fifty? What the hell did my kids order?"

Porter laughed and handed Elliot the two bags of food, tkaing the money from him. "I'll be right out here if you need me. Stabler, I know we haven't always gotten along..."

"I hate you," Elliot interrupted.

Porter laughed. "Okay," he said. "We have never gotten along. You tolerate me because of Olivia, and I know you think I took this job to get to her in some way."

"Are you making a point, or just stating the obvious?" Elliot asked, leaning against the doorframe.

"Stabler," Porter sighed, "I was at your wedding, I was there to see her look more beautiful than I've ever seen her, pledging to love you for the rest of her life. I knew when I met her that her heart belonged to you. I get it, and I'm really only here for you. To protect you both, and your family. I'm not over her, but I am over the fact that she chose you." He cleared his throat. "I just wanted you to know you can trust me," he said.

Elliot nodded. "Thanks," he said. "If I trusted you, I'd believe you." He laughed a little, giving Porter a handshake. He saw Porter roll his eyes and chuckled before he walked back to his car, and he knew that it was as close to friendship as the two would ever come.

* * *

"Casey?" Fin called into his apartment. "Case, babe?"

Casey yelled from inside the bedroom, "In here! I, uh, can't really...move."

Fin ran into the bedroom and he laughed, though he didn't mean to. "Novak, what the hell are you doin'? he asked, sliding the crib away from her.

"I was trying to put it together, and I got stuck," Casey said, looking up at him. "This isn't funny."

"You're pregnant, Case," Fin said. "Your belly got stuck in the side of a crib. It's funny." He shook his head and asked, "Why were you trying to do this by yourself?"

"I thought," Casey said, as Fin pulled her up, "That if I put it together, the baby would say, 'Oh, look, they're ready,' and get the hell out of me."

Fin laughed. "You really hate being pregnant don't you?" he asked, rubbing the sides of her belly that had been caught in the bars.

Casey rolled her eyes and groaned as she said, "With a passion."

"Ya know," Fin began, looking at Casey, "Olivia said it was one of the best experiences of her life."

Casey suddenly glared at Fin. "I'm not Olivia," she spat, walking out of the room.

Fin sighed. "Fuckin' hormones," he huffed, following her out.

* * *

"John," Alex yelled through the house. "John!"

Munch ran into the room, panicking. "What? What is it?"

Alex looked at him, then held up a little white stick. "You are never touching me again," she said, handing it to him.

Munch looked down at the stick in his hand, saw the two blue lines, his eyes widened, and he said, "We're having another baby."

"That's what that means, yes," Alex said. "Who knew you were just as fertile as Stabler?"

"I wouldn't go that far," Munch said with a smirk. He pulled Alex into his arms, smiling and sighing. He was getting used to having a family, and a wife he adored, and he was thrilled that it was only getting better.

* * *

Kathleen and Dickie threw away all of the empty carton's, and Maureen and Lizzie were washing off the table, when the doorbell rang again. "Gotta be Porter," Elliot grumbled. He kissed Olivia on the head as he rose to answer the door. He was puzzled, as no one was there. He turned to go inside, but stopped as something on the step caught his eye. He bent down and picked up the card in the envelope. He opened it, read it, scowled, and looked around. He caught Porter's eyes, waved the card at him, and dropped it back to the floor. He went back inside to his family, making sure the alarm on the door was set.

Porter, curious, got out of his car and ran up the steps. He picked up the card, read it, and looked around just as Elliot had. He was watching the house, and he didn't see anyone go near it. How did Lake get up the stairs without him noticing?

**A/N: What did the card say? Why did Casey flip out? Munch is gonna have another Munchkin, and is Porter really in it for the right reasons? And it's CHAPTER 60! That means it's audience participation time! Leave a comment with a line you would like a character to say, and it'll happen! Want another chappy? Lemme know, here or on Twitter: TMG212**


	61. Chapter 61

**A/N: What did the card say? Why did Casey flip out? Munch is gonna have another Munchkin, and is Porter really in it for the right reasons? (Wow - it's been almost three years since the story began! El - just turned 33, Liv-30, will be 31 soon; Maureen - 15, gonna be sixteen; Kathleen - 14, gonna be 15; Twins - 12, gonna be 13. Birthdays will be in chaps! =))**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf, genius, owns SVU and its characters. TStabler©, fan of genius, owns this story, the narrative, the dialogue, and everything but the characters.**

"It's not that big of a deal," Elliot said, handing Fin a beer. "I could tell you stories about things Liv said and did when she was pregnant with Josh that almost made me cry." He sneezed into the tissue in his hand, then looked at his friend. "It's hormones, man. She didn't mean it."

Fin sipped his beer and shrugged. "I think she did," he said. "She thinks I'm harboring feelings for your wife, man."

"You're not," Elliot said with a cough. He tilted his head and asked, "Are you?"

"What? No!" Fin spat. He looked at Munch and said, "What's your deal? You're over there all quiet."

Munch sighed, turning the beer can Elliot had handed him around in his hands. "Alex is pregnant," he said. "I'm gonna have another Munchkin."

"Hey, that's great man," Elliot said after a sneeze. "Congratulations."

Munch sighed. "I...I don't know if this is a good thing," he said.

"Kids are always a good thing," Elliot said, taking a gulp of his beer.

"Yeah, says you, the Catholic, barely thirty-three-year-old, father of, what is it, gonna be six now?" Munch cracked. "You can run around, play with your kids, you're gonna be here to see each and every one of them grow up, get married, have their own lives."

"Munch, what are you talkin' about?" Fin asked, raising an eyebrow.

Munch sighed again. "I'm not a young man," he said. "I'm old enough to be my son's grandfather!"

"Age is just a number," Elliot said. "Youth is about how you feel."

"Then I'm dead," Munch said. He nodded and sipped his beer as his friends laughed.

Elliot put his beer down, looked toward the kitchen, and said, "I'll be right back. I'm gonna go help Liv."

"Are you just excusing yourself so you can go make more Stablers?" Munch asked, peering over his glasses.

"Well, Munch, considering she's already pregnant," Elliot said snidely with an eye-roll, then he smirked. "This would just be practice," he said, leaving his friends to wonder if he was serious as he walked into the kitchen. "It smells amazing in here," he told Olivia, wrapping his arms around her as she stood behind the stove.

"I've picked up a few things, being married to you," Olivia said, looking over her shoulder to kiss him.

Elliot deepened the kiss, held her close, caressing her body, when a throat cleared. "Hi, Kat," Elliot said without even looking at the doorway.

"How'd you know it was me?" Kathleen asked, walking toward the fridge. She pulled out a bottle of juice and smiled as her father kissed her stepmother again.

"I know all of my kids' voices, Kat," Elliot said. He finished one last, long kiss with Olivia, then turned. "You done with your homework?"

Kathleen chugged her juice and said, "Considering I had to do it all in the hour that my teacher was here, yeah. When can we go back to school?"

"Tomorrow," Elliot said, taking the glass from his daughter and refilling it.

"Thank God," Kathleen said. "What are you making for dinner, Mom?" she asked, turning her attention to the stove.

Olivia looked at the pans in front of her. "Garlic and cheddar mashed potatoes, seared steak, and because Dickie won't eat anything else lately, spaghetti with basil and mushroom meatballs."

"Oh," Kathleen said, "Yeah, I'll have a little bit of neither."

"Kathleen," Elliot said, a warning tone.

Kathleen laughed. "I'm kidding, Dad! It all sounds amazing! I'm just remembering when Mom couldn't make boxed macaroni and cheese without almost killing us all. Here she is, rivaling Emeril Lagasse." She ripped the glass out of her father's hand and said, "It's weird."

Elliot laughed, watching his daughter wash out the glass, put it in the drain board, then put the juice away. "It's not weird, Kat. Liv's a wife and a mother now, she just...learned how to cook."

Kathleen nodded with an eye-roll, grabbing the plates out of the cabinet. "Right, I'm sure that's it." She walked into the dining room saying, "I'm sending Dickie and Lizzie in here to get the rest of the stuff to set the table."

Elliot chuckled, shaking his head, and turned back to Olivia. He sneezed as he asked, "Did she just do that without us asking?"

"Bless you. And yes, she did," Olivia said, stunned.

"Now that," Elliot said, pointing, "Was fucking weird." He laughed as he kissed Olivia again, and they prepared the rest of the dinner together, happy, and kissing every chance they got, between sneezes.

* * *

After Fin and Munch left, the family had an amazing dinner, the kids cleaned up the table, and everyone settled down in their own rooms, ready for a night of peace and relaxation. Olivia, though, stood at the bay-window in her bedroom, staring at the car parked across the street.

"Hey, baby, we haven't sneezed a few hours," Elliot said, wrapped in a towel, drying his hair with another one. He didn't get an answer. He took a breath and said, "He's not going to go away just because you stare at him

"I know that," Olivia said. She turned around and said, "It's just uncomfortable..." She stopped talking, staring at Elliot.

"Yeah?" Elliot prodded, tossing the small towel in his hands into the hamper. "Go on." He folded his arms, seeing the blank look on her face and said, "Liv? Earth to Olivia."

Olivia blinked, swallowed, and said, "Sorry. I just...you should know better than to do that."

"Do what?" Elliot asked with a smirk.

"Stand there, in a towel, knowing I'm gonna go completely stupid looking at you," Olivia said with a small grin. She stepped closer to him, put her hands on his bare, still wet chest, and whispered, "I think you're dry enough, Stabler."

Before Elliot could stop her, she had the towel yanked away from his body and tossed on the floor. "Oh, that was just rude," he joked. "Now I'm wet and cold," he said, looking down at her.

"I can fix that," Olivia said, pushing him down onto their bed.

"Oh, you can? How?" Elliot asked, his eyes darkening as he watched Olivia pull her top over her head. He ran his hands up her body and bit his bottom lip.

Olivia slid off her flannel pants, smirking. "I can find a few ways to heat you up," she whispered, bending forward to kiss him.

"I'd say you're doing a pretty damn good job already," Elliot groaned. He got a good grip on her and flipped them over. "You are the sexiest pregnant woman in the fucking world," he humbled, kissing his way down her body, running his hands over her belly.

"You'd better think so," Olivia moaned. "We'd have a problem if you didn't," she added, her fingers dragging through his freshly washed hair.

Elliot made his way back up, then looked her in the eyes. "You're the most beautiful in the world, pregnant or not," he whispered.

Olivia kissed him, pulling him close, at a loss for words and done talking anyway. She loved the way Elliot was careful of her bump, moving in just the right way and not laying on top of her too hard. She closed her eyes as Elliot pressed into her, and moaned when he started moving slowly.

From his car, Dean Porter sat and watched the love of his life making love to the love of hers. He respectfully looked away, though it was hard, and looked down at the card in his hands. "All right, Lake," he said. "How did you get to them?" he asked himself. He read the card again, reading the veiled threat, and thought. It was then he looked out the window, noticing something falling gently, like a leaf, and landing on the front steps of the Stabler house. "What the hell?" he asked no one. He got out of the car, ran up the steps and picked up the fallen card. He looked up and around, seeing the curtains move slightly in the window of an apartment across the street. "Damn it," he spat.

* * *

The ringing of the doorbell, the knock on the door, and the crying of the baby all seemed to happen at once. "Fuck," Elliot said, still on top of and inside Olivia.

Olivia, out of breath, said, "At least we were finished this time."

"Oh, baby, I was far from finished," Elliot said. "To be continued," he joked with a wink. He kissed her, then pulled out of her slowly, and got off of the bed, grabbing his robe off of the hook on the closet door. "I'll get the door, you get Joshie," he said, tying his robe closed and leaving the room.

Olivia moved, trying to get feeling back in her legs, and got her robe off of her own hook. She wrapped herself up tight and walked into the nursery, picking up her cranky boy. "Sweetie, it's okay," she said. "Mommy's here."

"Mama," Josh said, wailing in her ear, holding onto her tight.

Olivia kissed his forehead before laying him down on the changing table. "Yeah, Mama's here, buddy," she said, tickling him. She heard the baby laugh and she smiled. She changed his diaper, put him in a clean, dry pair of pajamas, and lifted him back into her arms. "Let's go see who interrupted mommy and daddy time, huh?" she said in a child-like voice to her son. She carried him down to the living room, breezed into the kitchen to grab a bottle, then walked back into the room to find Elliot and Dean, talking, on the couch. "This is something I thought I'd never see," she quipped, sitting in the lounge chair, feeding Josh.

"It's not exactly a social call, Olivia," Dean said. "I didn't want to scare you, I mean, I don't. But I think Lake, or someone working with him, is staying across the street. This came flying out of the window, perfectly timed and aimed to land on your step." He handed Elliot the card.

Elliot opened it, read it, and shook his head in disbelief. "This is what he wants?" he asked.

"Yeah," Dean said. "Screwing with case files, hijacking collars, it was only baby steps to his ultimate goal. He blames you for taking away his life, so..."

"He wants to take away mine," Elliot finished.

Olivia, having finished feeding and burping the baby, said, "Care to fill me in, here?"

Elliot looked at his wife. "When I was a rookie, just out of the academy, working homicide, I...got caught in the crossfire during a collar, and I shot. It was by the book, self defense, I swear. But...the perp...the guy died. I shot him right between the eyes, but I didn't mean to."

Dean interrupted. "Turns out that killer had a son," he said. "They'd just met, a week before. After the kid had been bounced around in foster care for most of his life, he finally found his father. He was gonna have a real life with his father."

"Lake," Olivia whispered. "You killed his father?"

Elliot leaned back in his seat on the couch. "I didn't mean to...I didn't know...how the hell was I supposed to know? I just...I didn't wanna die! I had a wife and a kid," he babbled.

Olivia shook her head. "El, baby, no one is blaming..."

"I am," Elliot said, snapping. "I've tried like hell to protect you and our kids, and something I did almost sixteen years ago has come back to bite me in the ass! This is my fault, Liv! I put you and our kids in danger, here," he said, angry. "I'm gonna fix it," he said, standing.

"What are you talking about?" Dean asked.

Olivia furrowed her brow. "El, what are you..."

"He wants me," Elliot said, walking toward the stairs. "It's me he's gonna get."

Olivia stood up fast, her son in her arms, but before she could speak, Dean said, "Stabler, you are not leaving this house. You have a wife most men would kill for and five and half kids who need you here," he said. "I told you I would take care of it, and I will. I swear, he will not hurt anyone in this house."

Olivia walked over to Elliot and held onto his with one hand and Josh slept soundly over her shoulder. "Just let Dean handle it," she said. "You don't have to..."

"I have to protect you, baby," Elliot said, looking sadly into her eyes. "It's my job."

"Your job," Olivia said, looking at him sternly, "Is to be my husband, and the amazing father that you are. You can't do that if you're dead!"

"Liv, baby, I..." Elliot paused, his head dropping to hers. "I don't wanna be the reason you're in trouble."

Olivia looked at him with a furrowed brow. "You couldn't have felt that way five years ago?" she asked, smirking. "El, you're not, baby. You were just doing your job. No one blames you. I just need you here, with your family. Protect me by saving me from the pain of losing you."

Elliot nodded slowly, then kissed her. He pulled away and turned to tell Dean he wasn't going anywhere, but he wasn't there. "Liv, where did he go?"

**A/N: Where did Dean go? Are we ready for Leyla? This story's end is almost near. The end, is unfortunately, unavoidable. Review here, or on Twitter: TMG212**


	62. Chapter 62

**A/N: Where did Dean go? Are we ready for Leyla? They aren't ready yet, but she has a cute moment in this installment. Four left. **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf, genius, owns SVU and its characters. TStabler©, fan of genius, owns this story, the narrative, the dialogue, and everything but the characters.**

"Are you getting it?" Olivia asked as she knelt over, beaming with pride, holding her arms out.

"Yes, baby, I'm getting it. Every blessed minute," Elliot chuckled, holding the video camera in his hand as he carefully followed Josh to Olivia. "Of course I'm getting it!" he laughed. "Who's Daddy's big boy?" he cooed at the child, taking very wobbly steps toward his mother.

Josh giggled and almost fell over, but steadied himself and ran into Olivia's open arms.

"You are such a big boy!" Olivia said, happy tears in her eyes as she lifted him up.

"Daddy got it all on camera buddy," Elliot said, scruffing his hair. "How did you know he was gonna walk?" he asked, still amazed.

Olivia looked at Elliot and said, "Well, I didn't. I just saw him pulling himself up and I had a feeling...so I told you to get the camera."

"Maternal instinct," Elliot chuckled. "It's like Spidey-Sense only better." He kissed her forehead, then her lips, then his son's forehead. "Walking, talking, drinking from a sippy-cup when he's awake enough to hold it, eating solid food," he listed. "We've got one great kid," he laughed.

Olivia nodded and kissed both of her boys, but Elliot held her to him a bit longer than Josh did. He deepened the kiss, turning her body to allow their son to be cradled between them, and he moaned lightly into her mouth. He pulled away and pecked her lips softly. He ran a hand over her still-growing-by-the-day bump and asked, "Are you proud of your big brother?"

Leyla's response was a good, swift kick.

Olivia groaned and laughed. "Thank you," she said to Elliot. "She was calm all day, then you had to...ow," she said, feeling the baby kick again.

"I love talking to my little girl," Elliot said in a sweet-voice to Olivia's belly. "Yes I do," he said, kissing her bump.

Olivia, overcome with love and pure emotion, ran her fingers through his hair and sniffled. She was unaware she was crying until Josh wiped her eye. "Waw-tuh," he said.

Elliot looked up, and smiled at his wife. "Yeah, buddy," he said to the boy but looking at Olivia. He brushed away the other tears and said, "That's water." He kissed Olivia again, then held her and Joshie close, swaying to the music that was filtering in from the radio in the kitchen. "It's been a while since we danced together," he said.

"Three days," Olivia said, chuckling. "Monday, to put Josh to sleep."

Elliot kissed her again. "We should make time to dance every night. With or without Joshie," he whispered to her.

"Yeah, get all of the romance out of the way now," Olivia said. "With two babies in the house..."

"Do not finish that sentence," Elliot said, kissing her. "We will always be like this," he told her. "I fell in love with you again today, by the way."

"Yeah?" Olivia asked, dancing with her husband. "Was that when I woke up in the middle of the night to throw up, when I rolled over in bed and burped in your face, made you rub my swollen, gross feet, or started crying during a toilet paper commercial?"

Elliot kissed her and said, "Yes."

Olivia chuckled. "Which time?"

"All of it," Elliot said. "I fell in love with you, all over again, about seven times today, and we have only been awake for four hours."

"You really need to say things like that when other people are around so I don't seem like I'm crazy when I tell them about it," Olivia said, smiling and nuzzling his nose.

Elliot scoffed. "Baby, this is the side of me that is reserved only for you," he whispered to her. "Everyone else has to think I'm an insensitive douchebag. It keeps moments like this private, and special."

"Every moment with you is special," Olivia said. She leaned in to kiss him, but the baby kicked and she burped. She and Elliot laughed and she apologized.

"Don't apologize," Elliot said, kissing her. "Just tell me when you had hot dogs," he said.

Olivia smacked him playfully, then looked down at her son. "He's asleep," she said.

"Dancing," Elliot said. "It always put him to sleep." He lifted the boy over his shoulder gently, kissed Olivia again, then walked upstairs to the nursery.

Olivia sighed contentedly and sat on the couch, truly loving life, just the way it was. Until the knock on the door, and Dean's unmistakable yell of, "It's me," interrupted her. "God," she mumbled, "Do you know how hard it is to get up when you're pregnant?" she yelled at the door. "Gimme a minute!"

Elliot ran down the stairs and was at the door at the same time she was. He chuckled at her exasperated expression and they answered the door together. "Where have you been, Porter?" Elliot asked. "You ran out of here so goddamned fast the other night..."

Dean pushed them aside and started pacing. "I don't know how it happened. I'm so sorry, I just...I don't know how..."

"What the hell, man?" Elliot said. "You're scaring Liv and pissing me off, just fucking..."

"I shot David," Dean said. "He'll be fine, it was just his knee, but I thought that it was Lake. I was chasing Lake, and then there was David with a gun drawn and I shot him."

Olive rubbed her belly and scooted closer to Elliot. "What?" she asked, finding it hard to believe. "He...he's okay, right?"

"He's at Mercy. He'll be fine," Dean said. "Lake...he saw the whole thing and...he started crying. Total break down. He said he understood now, he understood that it was an accident and in the dark, sometimes...you just shoot...well, anyway, he gave himself up."

Elliot let out a relieved breath. "So it's over?" he asked. "Really?"

Dean nodded. "I'm...I'll be out of your hair then," he said. "Oh, Elliot, before...before I leave. A word?" he asked. "Privately?"

Elliot assumed he needed to say something pertaining to the case that would upset Olivia, so he nodded. He kissed Olivia and followed Dean into the kitchen. "What?" he asked.

"Before I leave, you need to know," Dean said, lowering his voice because he knew Olivia was trying to listen. "I'm still in love with her. She's a hard girl to get over, and though I never had her, not really, she had me. I'm not gonna try anything, I will never come between the two of you. She's far too happy with you and I will never do anything to hurt her and destroy that." He narrowed his eyes then, and said, "But if you ever hurt her, ever even think about it, I will be on your ass like a fucking hemorrhoid."

Elliot held in a laugh and said, "I have never and will never do anything to hurt her. This is me and Liv you're talking about."

Dean smirked and lightly scoffed back at him. "Yeah, you don't hurt each other. Just everyone who's in the way, right?"

"Damn right," Elliot said, his look hard.

Dean looked away, sighed, and held out his hand. "Goodbye, Elliot," he said.

Elliot nodded. "Thank you," he said, meaning it. "Really." He walked Dean out into the living room, and after a brief goodbye with Olivia, he left.

Olivia ran a hand over her belly again, then looked at Elliot. "He threaten you?" she asked.

"He forgot who he was talking to for a minute," Elliot said with a nod. He guided Olivia back to the couch, then picked up the cordless phone. He dialed a number as he said, "We'll go see Dave when the kids come home from school." He held the phone to his ear and said, "Yeah, an order for delivery please. Two-One-Nine East Fifty-Sixth Street," he said. He looked at Olivia and answered her questioning glance with a smile. "One medium pepperoni and one very large, onion, olive, green pepper, ham, and pineapple. Yeah, my wife is pregnant, actually. Thanks." He hung up and laughed, then kissed Olivia.

Olivia pulled away quickly and said, "You forgot the..."

"We have hot sauce in the fridge," Elliot interrupted.

Olivia raised an eyebrow. "Okay, but you forgot..."

"We have grated cheese, too," Elliot told her with another kiss.

Olivia chuckled and wrapped her arms around him. "It is scary how well you know me," she told him.

"No, baby, what's scary is what you put on your pizza when you're pregnant," Elliot responded with a laugh. He held her close to him, cuddling on the couch until their pizza arrived.

* * *

"Hey, rugrats!" Dave shouted from his bed as his recovery room door opened and the Stabler kids ran in. "How are you guys?" he asked, giving Dickie a high five.

"We're cool," Dickie said, "How are you?" he asked.

Elliot and Olivia each hugged Penny, then greeted Cragen as their older children occupied their surrogate uncle.

Penny looked at Olivia and smiled. "You are glowing. Just glowing," she said. "That little girl is doing wonders for your aura."

"Yeah, she's doing wonders for my digestive system, too," Olivia said, chuckling.

Elliot helped her into her seat, then rolled Josh's stroller into a corner. "I have something to show you guys," he said, pulling out the camera. "Josh walked this morning, all by himself, and he ate pizza crust. He was a mess, because it had sauce on it, but it was the damned cutest thing."

Cragen's eyes lit up. "Wow," he said. "Not bad, kid," he said, poking the tot in his stomach. "So Joshie's got a big birthday coming up?"

"Yeah," Olivia said, smiling.

Penny grinned. "You are going to be able to handle him running around and the baby, no problem. I can tell."

Olivia laughed. "It's gonna be a challenge, but we've got a month to gear up for it."

"Oh, honey, Dad's now having a live elephant at the party," Elliot said. "He wants to give this kid the best first birthday party ever."

Olivia chuckled. "Tell him not make it too crazy, huh? she joked. "The last thing I need is to be shocked into labor on my son's birthday."

Elliot laughed. "It would make it really easy to remember the date," he told her. "The day we met, Josh's birthday, and maybe Leyla's. Best day ever." He ran a hand over Olivia's belly and said, "Hey, little girl. You wanna come out and play a couple of weeks early? Share a birthday with your big brother?"

A swift kick answered Elliot's question. "Oh, for the love of God, I hope that was her way of saying no," Olivia moaned.

The family laughed, but Elliot smirked. He knew his daughter, and that was a resounding yes.

**A/N: So we FINALLY get that birthday I've been promising, and will Leyla be the special guest at the party? Not much longer for this story. Review here or on Twitter: TMG212, and leave a request for something you'd like to see in the next and final 4 chapters!**


	63. Chapter 63

**A/N: Joshie's first birthday! A moment of mature discussion with the grown-ups, and a surprise guest! Three left. What would you like to see?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf, genius, owns SVU and its characters. TStabler©, fan of genius, owns this story, the narrative, the dialogue, and everything but the characters.**

"I can not believe Munch is actually riding that elephant," Elliot said, lifting the beer in his hand to his lips.

Olivia chuckled, running her open palm over her swollen belly. "I can't believe we actually have an elephant here for him to ride," she said, smirking.

"If there's one thing Ed Tucker is, honey, it's flashy," Elliot said with a chuckle. "Remember, he's making up for thirty-some-odd-years of not being here."

"And his answer to that is an elephant?" Olivia asked, laughing. "Josh is terrified of the thing."

Elliot hummed. "Yeah," he said. "And you kicked that clown right in the jewels. Maybe a circus themed party wasn't a good idea."

"No, baby," Olivia said, rubbing a hand over his shoulder. "Everyone is having a wonderful time, and that cotton candy machine is a God-send."

Elliot laughed and kissed her lips. "You'd buy that thing if you could, wouldn't you?" he asked, nuzzling her nose.

"Yep," Olivia said with a nod. Then she looked at him, tilted her head, and asked, "Could I?"

Elliot laughed. "No," he said, shaking his head and continuing to nuzzle her nose with his. "But I will tell the nice man to make a whole mess of it so we can take it home."

"Sounds good to me," Olivia said, kissing him.

They heard the elephant blow, and they turned in time to see Munch running, very fast, away from it. "Guess he's had enough," Olivia laughed.

"Look at our son," Elliot said, holding his wife close as they looked at Josh. He was in his big sister Maureen's arms, laughing at the clown who was making him a balloon giraffe. "We did good," Elliot said, kissing Olivia's neck.

"Yeah," Olivia said, turning. "We certainly did. And we're doing it all over again," she said, caressing her belly once. She wrapped her arms around Elliot's waist, kissing him, and just as they were going to get very involved, Ed Tucker cleared his throat, interrupting them.

"Oh," Elliot said, looking at him. "Hey, Dad," he said with a smile. "This party was fantastic, thank you. You didn't have to..."

"I did," Tucker said. "It's my grandson's first birthday. I wanted to give him a big enough bash to make up for the four that I missed. Oh, and some of your guests are leaving, so I came to get you to say goodbye," he told them.

Elliot nodded, took Olivia's hand, and walked back through Tucker's house, bidding some of their friends and neighbors farewell.

* * *

After cleaning up, and putting Josh down in his portable crib, the only people left in the house were Don and Polly, Ed and his wife, Elliot, Olivia, and their kids, Munch and Alex, and Fin.

"Are you sure it's okay for the kids to stay upstairs?" Olivia asked, discreetly moving her chair closer to Elliot's.

Tucker nodded. "They're watching a movie in the rec room up there. They'll be fine."

"Hey, Fin," Elliot called over the table, "Why did Casey leave like that?"

Alex turned to him, nodding. "She looked really upset. What did you do?" she asked.

Fin sighed, drinking his beer. He gestured to Elliot and Olivia as he said, "She kept watchin' Lucy and Ricky over there and complainin' that I didn't love her as much as Elliot loves Olivia."

"You don't," Elliot scoffed. "At least, in my opinion. But she's being..."

"Ridiculous," Fin interrupted. She wanted to know why I didn't buy her a pink, diamond ring for no reason, and why I wouldn't spend seven months home with her."

Elliot rolled his eyes. "Okay, the ring...yeah, I had a reason," he said, smirking. "And the only reason I had to take so much time off was because our lives were threatened and Cragen didn't want me anywhere near the station. My leave was actually supposed to start tomorrow," he explained.

Fin nodded. "I told her that," he said. "So why did you buy the ring, so I can get Casey off of my back?"

Elliot looked at Olivia, and they shared a secretive smirk. "Liv had josh," he said. "She gave me an amazing gift, I got her one. He was born on the day we met, so it was really more like an anniversary present."

Fin shook his head. "I can't tell that to Casey, then she'll make you give me romance lessons or some shit," he said. "Ya know, I miss George. He would have her analyzed and figured out...and I wouldn't have this problem."

Olivia cringed slightly at the mention of his name. "We all miss him," she said.

Elliot ran his hand up and down her leg, kissed her head, and nodded. "We do," he said. "But he died doing what he loved. He told me once, that he knew he would go out like that."

Munch chuckled. "Yeah, I remember that conversation. He was trying to get inside your head to see if you were in love with your partner. You told him hell would freeze over before you got a chance with Olivia."

"And look at us now," Olivia laughed.

Alex rolled her neck and said, "Ya know, it's been a while since we had some grown-up discussions. In our house it's either, 'Benny wants to color' or endless hours of Dora the fucking Explorer. I want to shove that goddamned purple backpack down her annoying, little throat."

"Christ, Al," Olivia said, her eyes wide. "It's just a cartoon!"

"But it's all Ben watches," Alex groaned. "I woke up the other night, to get a midnight snack, and I found myself thinking, 'How do I get to the fridge? Hallway, staircase, kitchen!' Then I hummed that damn map song the whole way there."

The group laughed and Elliot said, "It could be worse. Josh is addicted to that fucking 'Yo, Gabba, Gabba' shit. I mean, is our society so screwed up that we need people in brightly colored costumes to sing about how it's wrong to bite your friends?"

"You want Josh to bite his friends?" Munch asked.

"Not at all," Elliot said, sipping his beer. "But if he ever did, the other kid would just bite him the fuck back, he'd realize it hurts, and he'd stop doing it."

Olivia groaned. "And the guy? Lance whatever? He is the most flamboyantly gay human being on the planet, and he has this creepy smile with these really big teeth...he reminds me of someone we arrested last year, and Josh loves him to death! That scares me."

The group laughed again, then Alex picked her head up and looked at Olivia and Elliot. "You two...just can't keep your hands off of each other, can you?"

"What?" Olivia asked, confused.

Alex rested her head on her hand, and she sighed. "You are so close to each other right now, you're practically sitting in each other's lap. He's running his fingers through your hair, you've got one hand in his other hand and the other on his knee, it's just...so cute."

Munch scoffed. "Cute?" he asked. "Sickening," he corrected.

Alex smacked him in the chest, then asked, "If you don't mind talking about it, how many times a week would you say you two..."

"Hey," Tucker interrupted. "That's my son," he declared.

"And you know he's not a virgin," Alex said. "Clearly, the five kids and Olivia's pregnant ass are proof your son knows his way around the bedroom."

Tucker chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Carry on," he said.

"Well, you know what I was gonna ask," Alex said, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms, smirking.

Elliot put his beer down and cracked his neck, feeling slightly uncomfortable. "I don't really think that's any of your business," he said.

Fin chuckled. "Oh, here we go," he said. "Stabler's the kinda guy who thinks what happens in the bedroom, stays in the bedroom."

"Yeah, I am," Elliot said, a bit loud. "That's between me and my wife, and...ow," he yelped. Looking at Olivia. "You okay?" he asked. Her hand had just squeezed his leg very, very hard.

Olivia took a deep breath. "I think I'm okay now," she said. "Just, uh, must have eaten too much cotton...never mind," she said, squeezing Elliot's hand. "Oh, my God," she moaned.

"Oh, shit," Elliot spat, pushing his chair back. "Are you fucking kidding me, right now?" he cried. "Someone yell up to the kids that they're about to meet their sister," he said, helping Olivia up.

"It's too soon, El," Olivia cried, gripping his arms.

"Only two weeks," Elliot said. "And that was a guess, remember? The doctor wasn't really sure when you were due, the date kept changing, I think we might be right on time, kitten." He held her in his arms as the kids ran down the stairs.

Polly grabbed Josh and settled him in his carrier, Cragen walked out with her, and the whole group followed Elliot and a heavily breathing Olivia out to their car.

Elliot helped Olivia into the front seat, buckled her in, then kissed her. He ran around to the driver's side and started the car as the kids piled into the vehicle. Polly set the carrier in its car-seat hold, and Elliot leaned over the console to kiss Olivia one more time. "You ready to do this again, baby?" he asked, smiling.

"As long as you're right there holding my hand," Olivia said, smiling back.

"I was last time, I will be this time," Elliot said. Then he kissed her again and said, "And I will be next time." He straightened up, took Olivia's hand, said, "Squeeze when it hurts, baby," and drove off.

Olivia squeezed his hand hard as a contraction hit her. "I blame you for this," she said.

"I know you do," Elliot said, keeping his eyes on the road. "You hate me and I'm never touching you again, I get it," he said, trying to remain calm.

"No!" Olivia yelled. "I love you, and you can touch me all you want," she spat. "I blame you for giving Leyla the bright idea to come out and play on her brother's birthday!"

Elliot chuckled. "I was kidding, but if our little girl's ready to come out, then she's ready, honey. There's nothing we can do," he told her. "Just breathe," he said. "I'm ready to meet our daughter, Liv," he said softly.

"Oh, El," Olivia said, sighing, "So am I."

Elliot smiled. He pressed down on the gas, amused that his father and stepmother were in a squad car in front of them , with flashing lights and a siren. They had a police escort, traffic was clearing for them, and the caravan of people behind him let him know that he and his wife were not the only ones who were ready to meet little Leyla.

**A/N: Wooo, she's coming! And what is up with Casey? A surprise awaits them at the hospital! Only three more chapters...review here, or on Twitter: TMG212 **


	64. Chapter 64

**A/N: Leyla? And what is up with Casey? A surprise awaits them all at the hospital! **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf, genius, owns SVU and its characters. TStabler©, fan of genius, owns this story, the narrative, the dialogue, and everything but the characters.**

"Is Mom gonna be okay?" Lizzie asked, looking up at Alex.

Alex nodded, though she wasn't sure. "yeah, sweetie," she said. "Your little sister just wanted to come out feet first, ya know? She's like her mother, and need to be difficult and different." She chuckled, then ran a hand through Lizzie's blonde hair. "This happens all the time, and I promise, your mother and Leyla are gonna be just fine."

Cragen, pacing back and forth, tried to keep a level head. "She's probably in there barking orders at people and fighting like hell. She hates hospitals, she hates being the one in the hospital, and if they have to cut her open to get…"

He was interrupted by a swinging open wooden door. Elliot, on the other side, had a surgical mask low on his chin, tears in his eyes, and it was hard to tell if he was laughing or crying. Everyone in the waiting was looking at him, expectantly, and he burst into a fit of hysterics.

"Oh, God," Alex said, her eyes widening. "Something happened, he's in shock and delirious," she babbled, pointing at him.

Elliot held up and waved a hand, shaking his head, his hard laughter turning into coughs. "No," he heaved. "Liv…she was in so much pain, and she got so impatient and pissed off that she actually tried to reach in there and turn the baby around herself. She had to be held down, she gave one of the nurse a black eye…"

"So she was being her pleasant self," Munch said impatiently. "What happened? How is she?"

Elliot softened his look. "She's beautiful," he said. "They're both beautiful."

"The baby?" Fin asked, standing up. "She good? Breeched and early, she's okay?" he asked, tilting his head.

Elliot smirked. "Perfect," he said. "She was actually a day late," he laughed.

"Really?" Ed asked, grinning.

Elliot nodded. "And she is gorgeous. Six pounds, nine ounces, with the most beautiful little brown eyes you're ever gonna see in your life." He wiped a tear away as it began to fall. "She's a little, tiny Liv." He pushed the door open, holding it back as he gestured for his kids to walk through it. "Just them for now, guys," he said. "Liv is really sore and emotional, and the doctors said immediate family only, at least until she stops crying. I'll come get you later." He nodded at the relieved, smiling faces, and followed his kids into the hall, letting the doors close behind him.

Fin sighed and sat down, shaking his head. "I don't think I've ever been so scared in my life," he said. "I thought that she was gonna…"

"We all did," Casey's voice said from his right.

Fin looked up, his eyes wide. "You're here," he said.

"I had to come," Casey said with a shrug. She sat beside him and said, "I'm sorry. I've been acting like a lunatic, I know that, but you need to know why." She opened her purse, pulling out a letter. "I found this in your desk drawer. I was just looking for a pen, but…"

Fin took the letter, opened it, and shook his head. "Case," he said, looking back up at her. "You think I wrote this to her?" he asked.

"You...what?" Casey said, blinking quickly.

Fin twisted, turning toward her, and said, "Case, Stabler wrote this, baby. Why the hell would I write something like this to Olivia?" he asked, chuckling.

"Why would he?" Casey asked, refusing to believe she'd been wrong. "It's all about how sorry he was that he never told her he loved her, and he would do anything to change things between them so they could be together…it doesn't make sense if…what?"

Fin ran his hand over the swell of Casey's belly. "Case, Elliot wrote that letter, shit, about five years ago. He told me to hold onto it, just in case anything ever happened to him. He wanted me to give it to her if he ever got shot, or somethin', so she would know. He never did, and they found each other before he could. I completely forgot it was even in my desk," he explained.

"He didn't sign it," Casey said, her lower lip trembling. "If he had just…"

Fin interrupted again. "Baby, it says, 'Dear Liv," he said. "He's the only one who's ever called her that. Besides, he said he wasn't finished writin' it, so…" he shrugged, trailing off.

Casey sighed. "I feel like the world's biggest idiot," she said. "I kept pushing you to see that they were so in love and get you to see that I was right here and…the whole time you were…"

Fin stopped her with a sweet kiss. "Casey," he said, "There will always be just you. You. Baby-Girl in there's like my kid sister. You are the only girl for me." He rubbed her belly again and said, "Well, maybe not the only girl. She's gonna steal a big chunk of my heart."

Casey chuckled. "Mine, too," she said. "We have to pick a name, Fin. We're running out of time."

"I told you what I wanna name her," Fin said, kissing her again.

Casey rolled her eyes. "I am not naming our daughter Magnolia," she said. "How the hell did you even think that would be a good…"

"M, for Munch and Melinda, A for Alex, A-G, from Cr-ag-en, only I know it's a different soundin' A but work with me here. N-O, the first two letters of your maiden name, O-L-I-A, kinda sounds like Olivia and ya got the L-I, 'lee,' in there for 'El-lee-ot," Fin explained rapidly and in one breath, proving his phonetic skills.

Casey stared at him. "You are…that is the most…how the fuck did you…that doesn't make any…"

"You love it now, don't you?" Fin asked, smirking.

"I really kinda do," Casey said, a smile slowly spreading across her face. "How long did it take you to figure that out?" she asked, linking her fingers with his.

Fin shrugged. "Couple days," he said. "I wanted to give her a name that meant somethin' to us, and then I thought of our family, our real family, and at first I tried usin' just the first letter of everyone's name, but all I got that sounded anythin' like a name was 'cameo' and I ain't given my girl a fucked up name like that." He looked at the flabbergasted expression on Casey's face and said, "We can call her Maggie."

Casey laughed and kissed him. "Magnolia Dawn Tutuola," she said.

"Dawn?" Fin asked, making a face.

"You are naming her after a flower," Casey said. "I get to pick the middle name."

Fin chuckled. "You are such a fuckin' lawyer," he said.

"Don't you forget it," Casey said, smirking. She kissed him softly and let her head drop to his shoulder as they waited to meet Leyla.

* * *

"She's so cute," Maureen said, peering down at the baby in Olivia's arms.

Elliot, who was still crying slow, happy, relieved tears, was sitting on the bed beside his wife, with his arm draped over her, curled protectively around her and the baby. "Yes, she is," he said, smoothing the small amount of deep brown hair she had back with one finger.

Lizzie wiped a tear away from Olivia's eye and said, "It's okay, Mom."

"I know it is, pumpkin," Olivia said with a sniffle. "It is now," she added. She was thanking a God that she was only just starting to believe in for that.

Kathleen, with Josh in her arms, moved closer to the bed. "You think she'll ever ask why she's the only one of us that doesn't have blue eyes?" she asked with a chuckle.

"No," Olivia said. "She'll know she has Mommy's eyes," she said with a yawn.

Dickie looked down at his little sister. "Ya think Josh and Leyla are gonna ask why they're brunettes and we're not?" he asked.

Elliot sighed. "Dickie," he began, "We're gonna tell them about Kathy. And they're gonna know that it doesn't matter what hair color or eye color you guys have, you're all their brothers and sisters and we are your parents, and this family is only gonna get bigger and better and closer."

"Bigger?" Olivia questioned, giving Elliot an incredulous look.

Elliot laughed. "Baby," he said, "We're a Catholic, married couple, in our early thirties."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "I don't even wanna think about baby number three right now," she said, seething in slight pain and discomfort as she tried to sit up more.

The family shared a laugh, but stopped when they heard Josh's little voice. "Bay-beee!" he squealed, reaching for Leyla.

"That's right buddy," Elliot said, taking his boy out of Kathleen's arms. "This is your baby sister, Leyla." He watched, as did the rest of the family, as Josh stuck out a hand and carefully touched Leyla's head.

"Bay-bee," Josh said. His little hand stroked down his sister's nose, and he said, "Luff."

Olivia's heart just about exploded. "Oh, my God," she whispered with a crying chuckle, leaning into her husband. "El," she said, looking up at her.

"I know, baby," Elliot said, fresh tears filling his eyes. "He loves her," he whispered.

Maureen gasped and smiled as she watched her little brother attempt to grab Leyla's hand. "What's he doing?" she asked softly.

"Da, Ma," Josh spoke, "Anse!" he cried, pulling himself further up on Elliot's chest while still clutching his baby sister's blanket.

Olivia furrowed her brow. "What does he want?" she asked, starting to get a bit nervous with josh grabbing at the baby.

"Bay-bee anse," Josh babbled. "Bay-bee seep!"

"Liv," Elliot said, laying Josh over his shoulder, "He wants us to dance with him and the baby."

Olivia smiled in amazement and adoration at her son. "He thinks she needs to go to sleep," she said. "I can't get up for this, El," she said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

Elliot leaned over and kissed her forehead. "I'm not getting up, honey," he said. He turned slightly so Olivia could see their son's closed eyes as he rested on Elliot. "Josh is already knocked out and think this little one is close to it," he said, running a light finger over Leyla's newborn cheek. He flattened out a bit and leaned against the back of the hospital bed, making everyone more comfortable.

Lizzie laughed a little. "I think today should be some kind of national holiday," she said. "It's the day you two met, Josh's birthday, and now Leyla's. She was born before midnight, right?" she asked, looking up at her father.

Elliot nodded. "Eleven fifty," he said, chuckling at the similarity between Josh's and Leyla's births.

"Yeah," Lizzie said. "It should definitely be a national holiday."

Olivia yawned, her own eyes closing just as her daughter's were. "You call the president and tell him about it," she mumbled. "Lemme know how it goes." She dropped her head to Elliot's shoulder, nuzzled him for a moment, and was out like a light.

"She really does look like Mom," Kathleen said, looking down at the baby girl. She looked up at her father and said, "We were all really scared for a minute, there, Daddy."

Elliot exhaled deeply. "So were we," he admitted. "The panic, the fear of something happening to your mother or the baby, the rush and confusion in here with all the doctors trying to get Leyla out," he listed. Then he sighed again, shaking his head. "And your mom," he said. "She was a wreck. She was terrified, and you know what she does when she gets scared. She went into cop mode, trying to treat herself like she would treat a victim and detactch from the situation. She made the doctors call her Detective Benson, she cried and screamed, and she was hitting people until they finally told her the baby was okay."

Dickie looked up at his father. "So did you get her to turn around?" he asked, confused. "Isn't it, like, a big deal if she doesn't?"

Elliot smiled at his son. "Well, she only turned herself over on the way out," he said with a shrug. "She was in a perfectly normal position up until she decided to join us, that's why the doctor's didn't prepare for anything like this happening," he said, stroking Leyla's cheek. "There was no time to prep Mom for surgery or anything, because Leyla was on her way and coming fast." He tried to keep the tears in, so he cleared his throat and blinked. "We knew that the risks were the same, so we told the doctors and nurses to deliver her. They were having a problem because Liv was panicking and the baby was panicking…I just…I asked them both to calm down. Doctor Bennet said once the baby heard my voice she stopped struggling and out she came," he said. "No problem."

Lizzie smiled at her sleeping baby sister and said, "Welcome to world, Leyla Olivia Stabler."

The kids surrounded the bed as Olivia and the baby got some much needed sleep, and they spent some time taking in the joy of being a family, being together, and finally having the newest Stabler out and safe.

Elliot looked at his children, all six of them, and he wondered, only briefly, how he and Olivia would manage, especially since he wanted more children with her. He smiled as the moment of worry passed and he saw his newborn daughter's little lips curl into a sleeping smirk. He was looking into the face of an angel, what he imagined Olivia must have looked like, and he said a silent prayer up to God for making sure she was all right.

Outside, in the waiting room, eight other people were unknowingly doing the same exact thing.

**A/N: Leyla's here, after the unavoidable tension. Casey was a little nutty, no? And what did that letter say, exactly? Two chapters left. Anything you want to see happen? Leave a review here, or tell me on Twitter: TMG212**


	65. Chapter 65

**A/N: The penultimate chapter. Is the Stabler house hectic, or are they managing okay? And an unavoidable conversation.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and related characters belong to Dick Wolf. Story, dialogue, narrative and plot belong to TStabler©**

Elliot woke up in the middle of the night, looked around, then got out of the bed. He padded out of the room, into the nursery, and smiled as he saw Olivia slowly swaying with her baby girl in her arms. Josh, in a larger crib against another wall, was still sound asleep. "Hey," Elliot whispered into the cool, dimly lit room.

Olivia, not looking away from the sleeping baby, smiled and blinked. "Hey," she whispered back.

Elliot moved toward her, looking at the mother and child, and he reached for the tiny girl. He scooped her into his arms, then turned, placing her gently in her snug bassinet. "Honey," he said, "She woke up hours ago. Have you been holding her this whole time?"

Olivia shrugged. "I must have been," she said.

Elliot saw the look on her face, then took her hand and led her back into their room. "What's wrong, baby?" he asked.

"Noth…" She stopped, looking at him, knowing it was impossible for her to lie to him and get away with it. She sighed and shook her head. "What was wrong with her?" she asked.

Elliot looked confused. "Wrong with who?" he asked, brushing Olivia's hair back.

"My mother," Olivia said, looking over Elliot's shoulder at a blank spot on the wall. "I had no desire to be a mother. Not until I started working with the unit, until I met you. El, looking at our two, little…" She stopped again and swallowed hard. "I'm not saying I love the other kids any less, but there's something different when it's…_your_ child. You know? A part of me, my blood, my life…is flowing through those little angels' veins, and with one look at them I knew that there was not a single thing in this world that would hurt them if I had anything to say about it."

"Welcome to parenthood," Elliot quipped, an attempt to lighten the mood.

Olivia shook her head. She wasn't in the mood for jokes. "I don't care, El. I don't care how, or why, or when, it happens. If you are pregnant, then you make choices. Drink, don't drink. Smoke, don't smoke. Keep the baby, don't keep the baby. Love the baby, don't love the baby. But if you aren't going to love it…"

"Honey," Elliot said softly, knowing where she was going. "Stop it," he said, caressing her cheek.

"No, El," Olivia protested. She looked at him, her eyes red, about to let tears fall. "She looked at me! She held me in her arms and looked at me, and she felt nothing but pure regret and hate," she cried. "If she knew then that there was no way in Hell she was ever going to love me, then why…" her voice broke, she felt a tear running down her cheek. "How could anyone look at a child, their own child, and not instantly love them? You know! You just know. You love them from the moment you find out they're growing inside of you, and when you feel them kick for the first time you know that you love those little feet."

"I know you do, baby," Elliot said, nodding. "Same goes for real fathers," he said, sliding his hands down her arms.

"She had choices, El," Olivia said. "She had so many fucking choices," she repeated, more tears falling. "She chose to keep me; why would she do that if she knew right away she didn't love me?"

Elliot had no words. He knew that after giving birth, some women went into hyper-emotional states, but he wasn't sure if this was hormones or years of not dealing with her mother's rejection. He held her against him, letting her cry, rubbing her back and kissing the crown of her head. "You have more than enough love to make up for it," he finally whispered.

Olivia sniffled. "What?" she asked, having not heard him with her head buried in his chest.

Elliot lifted her chin, looked into her eyes, and said, "It didn't make a difference, baby. What you went through with her, it's made you this incredible, strong, sexy, brilliant, vibrant woman. And she had no impact on your ability to love. You love our kids, all of them, unconditionally. You love me, and I love you more than we could have possibly imagined ever loving anyone. It hurt, and it wasn't fair, but you survived and she taught you what not to do, making you the best cop, woman, and mother in the world." he told her. He kissed her and swiped a falling tear away.

Olivia looked up at him, her eyes drying, and she let her trembling lips curl into a small smile. "You think I'm brilliant?" she asked, finally returning his humor.

Elliot chuckled and rolled his eyes. He kissed her and said, "You know I do."

"I love you," Olivia said, dropping her head to the crook of his neck.

Elliot sighed, holding her close. He smiled and pulled her down flat, making them comfortable, and said, "I love you, too, baby."

* * *

The next morning was rough. The family sat about the kitchen, eating breakfast. Olivia held Leyla in one arm as she reached for a ringing phone. There was a dog barking somewhere in the background, so she yelled to make herself heard. "Where are you?" she yelled into the phone.

"Mom!" Dickie yelled, standing suddenly, "I just got juice all over my pants. Crap!"

Elliot, dropping the spoon he was using to feed Josh, stood up and said, "I got it." He took Dickie into the downstairs bathroom as Josh, still hungry and annoyed that he was no longer being fed, started wailing.

Olivia moved, leaning her head down, clutching the phone between her ear and shoulder. She switched arms, moving a squirming Leyla to the left as she picked up the spoon, scooped up some of the mashed bananas and yogurt, and made a face and an airplane noise. "Feeding my son," she said into the phone. "What did you think I was doing? Can you tell that dog to shut up? Why is there a dog in the squadroom anyway?" she asked, slipping the spoon into Josh's open mouth.

Maureen and Kathleen cleared the dishes and kissed Olivia on the cheek. They left, heading to school, leaving Olivia to deal with the rest of the kids and the morning chaos.

Lizzie, packing up her books, said, "Tell Dickie I couldn't wait for him." She kissed Olivia, then gave the baby and Josh quick pecks on the forehead. "Love you!" she shouted on her way out of the door.

Elliot and Dickie finally came out of the bathroom, Dickie in new, clean pants and Elliot staring down and the stained ones. "Just go," he told his son. "I'll take care of this. You're gonna be late."

Dickie shouted, "Love you! Bye!" as he grabbed his bag and headed out of the door.

Elliot walked over to the sink, turned the cold water on, and dropped Dickie's juice-stained pants into it. He looked back at Olivia and his eyes widened. He ran over to her and took the spoon out of her hands, resuming his fatherly duty of feeding Josh.

Olivia mouthed a quick, "Thanks," and straightened out her neck as she took the phone in her hands. "No, neither one of us is coming down there. You are on your own with this one. Call us if you need anything, but we are officially off duty for the next…holy shit!" she yelped suddenly, running toward the overflowing sink. She gripped the phone with her chin again, then turned the water off. She reached for a sponge and said, "Yeah. Bye."

"I hate Mondays," Elliot said, shaking his head.

Olivia, exasperated, turned to him. "I hate mornings," she said, "Period."

"Who was on the phone?" Elliot asked, making goofy faces at his giggling son, making the spoonful of mush dance. Josh opened his mouth, reached for his father's hand, and pulled the spoon into his mouth by himself.

"Fin," Olivia said, sitting next to him, cradling Leyla, and finally heaving a much-needed sigh.

"Were you saying something about a dog?" Elliot asked, raising an eyebrow as he gave up and gave Josh the spoon.

Olivia hummed and nodded, watching her son feed himself, getting more food in his hair than in his mouth. "There's a German Sheppard in the squadroom. They're holding him for evidence. Apparently, he tried to eat their vic."

Elliot cringed. "Glad I didn't get to eat yet," he said, shaking his head and gagging. "What are they gonna do with it? I don't think they've got procedures for arresting a dog."

Olivia leaned into Elliot and silently asked him to slide down her strap so she could nurse the baby. "They're waiting for someone from the crime lab to grow the balls to go near the thing," she said.

"Lemme guess," Elliot said, massaging her shoulders gently before he moved her clothes. "Fin wanted us to go down there and do it? What the hell needs to be done that he can't do?" he asked, finally moving the thin cotton off of her perfect shoulders.

Olivia rolled her neck, moving for him, and said, "They have to take swabs of his teeth and gums, they have to get a bite impression, and they think he may have been stabbed with the murder weapon, so they have to shave him to get a good look at the wound."

"So," Elliot said, resisting the urge to take off her top completely, "The dog's just chillin' in the sqaudroom?"

Olivia seethed a bit as the baby latched onto one of her nipples. "He's chillin' all right," she chuckled. "Eating everything in sight, chewing on Munch's desk, drinking out of the toilet. He's having a grand, old time."

Elliot chuckled and kissed Olivia's neck. He was silent for a moment, then he dropped several soft kisses to her bare shoulder. He couldn't stop staring at the sight before him, his daughter feeding from his wife. "I love watching this," he said, brushing Olivia's hair aside. "I love watching the way you mother all of our kids," he whispered, kissing her neck. "I know it's gonna get a little crazy, but…we can do this, right?" he asked, running his fingers through her hair.

"We can do anything," Olivia said, moving her left arm to allow the baby to reattach to her nipple. She seethed again. "Not the most comfortable thing in the world," she chuckled, turning to Elliot.

"Just the most beautiful," Elliot said, nodding at her. He kissed her lips, moving his hand to under his daughter's head, helping Olivia support her as they got lost in their kiss. Their moment.

Josh, tired of being ignored, it seemed, lifted his spoon and tossed a glob of bananas at his father. He squealed with delight as Elliot turned toward his son, his lips still puckered, and wiped the mashed, sticky slop off of his face. "It's in my ear," he said, stifling a chuckle.

"He's got good aim," Olivia said, smirking.

Elliot laughed as she, too, was nailed by flying baby food. It hit her right in the mouth. "Yes, he does," he chuckled, shaking his head. He reached over to the table and grabbed two napkins. He wiped the mess off of her mouth, then began scooping bananas out of his ear as he told Josh not to throw his food.

"El," Olivia said, taking a deep breath, "I was really scared."

Elliot turned to her. "I know you were," he said, crumpling the napkins and tossing them, like basketballs, into the bin by the door. "I was terrified, too," he admitted.

"That's why I got so upset last night," Olivia told him, removing her daughter from her breast and pulling her top back up. She rested the now-sleeping baby in the bassinet by her feet. "I was ready to die for her, and I hadn't even met her yet. I already loved her enough to do anything to save her," she told him. "I just don't understand how that's not something every mother feels," she admitted with a shrug. "We see it everyday at work, and it's a shock every single time."

Elliot kissed her, tasting a mild hint of his son's bananas. "That's what makes you so amazing," he said. "You're a very loving, nurturing, selfless woman. It's what makes you such an amazing mother, honey. You are everything a mother should be. Better than that. Don't ever think, for one second, that anything your mother said or did to you is going to somehow make you like her."

Olivia nodded. Then she looked at him and laughed.

"What is so funny?" Elliot asked, confused.

Olivia looked at her banana and yogurt covered son, and back at Elliot. "Like father, like son," she said, picking up a napkin. She grabbed a glob of yogurt that was on the top of his head, wiping it off of him, and she smiled as she kissed him. This was her life. Hectic, crazy, exhausting, and filled with nothing but love.

The next time the phone rang, though, it would get a whole lot crazier, and there would be more people to love.

**A/N: What does the phone call tell them? And something tells me we haven't seen the last of that dog. Reviews here, or on twitter: TMG212 and tell me what you want to see in the LAST CHAPTER. The end, sadly, is unavoidable.**


	66. Chapter 66

**A/N: The end, sadly, is unavoidable.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and related characters belong to Dick Wolf. Story, dialogue, narrative and plot belong to TStabler©**

"How did you let him talk you into this?" Olivia asked, one hand holding onto Josh's as the other rolled the stroller with a sleeping Leyla inside.

Elliot shrugged. "The man needed a favor, baby. And look how cute he is! He isn't a bad dog," he said. "Hey! Kal! Come here boy!" he called, yelling to the spunky German Shepherd a few feet in front of him.

The obedient dog turned and walked swiftly back to Elliot.

"Good boy," Elliot said, scratching under the dog's neck. "It's only for a few days," he said.

Olivia tilted her head. "Yeah, okay," she said. "You know damn well you already love him. His name is Kal-El. As in, Superman? Face it, this was meant to be your dog, Stabler."

Elliot looked up at his wife, from his currently bent position on the floor by the dog. "What?" he asked, making sure he heard her correctly.

Olivia tugged on Josh, pulling him closer to her. "You feed it, you walk it, get the kids to help you..."

"You're serious?" Elliot interrupted. "You want to keep him?" he asked, smiling brightly.

Olivia sighed. "Every family needs a dog, Elliot," she said with a roll of her eyes. "And he is...really cute. And one hell of a watch-dog."

"Yeah," Elliot said, scratching behind the dog's ears. "Who knew the vic he bit was really the perp? He was trying to save his owner's life," he said, rising to his feet.

Cragen, stepping out of his office, said, "He got there too late, but he never left the girl alone. That's why we assumed..."

"Yeah," Elliot interrupted, choosing not to hear about work. "We just came for the dog. Fin said he needed a new home, we wanna give him one."

Cragen held up a leash and a Ziploc bag filled with kibble. "Go with God, you son of a bitch," he said to the dog as Elliot took the things out of his hands. "Munch needs a new desk and I need new shoes."

"We weren't his owners when he did that," Olivia said, lifting Josh into her arms. "You can't hold us responsible."

Cragen laughed, then poked Josh in the stomach, making him giggle. "So when are you two coming back to work?" he asked, looking from Olivia to Elliot.

Elliot folded his arms. "Four months," he said. "You know that, why are you asking?"

"Because I'm retiring in three," Cragen said, putting his hands on his hips.

Olivia's eyes widened. "What? Cap, when did you..."

"Penny and I talked about it, and I've got plenty of time on the job. The severance package is great and my pension plan is wonderful," Cragen said his eyes darting between them. "I want to be home with my wife and son, and I want to be able to watch my grandkids during the day. Live the life I should have been living this whole time."

Elliot nodded in understanding. "But why did you ask when we were coming back? Whether it's under your supervision or Munch's, parental leave is..."

"I want you to do it," Cragen said, looking seriously at Elliot.

"Me?" Elliot asked, stunned.

Cragen nodded. "You're younger, faster, you have one hell of a temper which means you'll scare the shit out of anyone before they can give you any problems. You're an arrogant hot-head, meaning you won't stop until you get what you want, and everyone in this unit respects you. I won't have to worry about IAB being up your ass, either," he said with a hint of a smirk. "You've got the makings of a great captain. That is...if your partner can let you go."

Elliot and Cragen looked at Olivia, who was shifting Josh in her arms. "Lemme think," she said. "Take a lot of his shit and have him boss me around for the same amount of money I get, or actually let him earn the right to be a complete ass at work? Hard choice," she joked.

"Liv," Elliot said, crossing his arms, offended.

Olivia leaned over and kissed him. "I'm teasing you, you big baby. Honey, you told me once that you didn't want to be a detective forever. Maybe this is..."

"I meant, like, I'd retire when I was sixty and write cheesy, mystery novels," Elliot interrupted. "I don't...I really don't want to be the...can I say no?"

Cragen smirked. "You can," he said. "But if the only reason you're saying no is because you don't trust anyone else with your wife, then I would think long and hard about making that your final answer."

Elliot swallowed hard and looked at Olivia. "What do you think?" he asked, raising his eyes.

"El, baby," Olivia said, turning her body to face him head on, "I want whatever you want. It would mean more money, less time in the field for you, more responsibility...it's got its pros and cons, but you can't tell me you don't want it. Say yes, say no, I will back you up, just like I always have."

Elliot held her gaze for a minute, then he looked at the boy in her arms, the girl in the stroller, and thought about the four kids who were across town in classrooms. "We need the money," he mumbled, "And it would be really nice to be..."

"In charge?" Cragen asked with a smirk.

"The man?" Olivia quipped, nudging him with her elbow.

Elliot shook his head. "I was gonna say, it would be really nice to not have to be the one that tells the parents," he said. "To not have to look the girls in the eyes and see the fear, and the hate, and..." he licked his lips and shook his head. "I can't let Liv do all of that on her own. I can't let her do that without me," he declared.

Cragen sighed and said, "So don't. You'd be in charge, you could..."

"Keep her in here," Elliot finished for him. "She'd work with the vics and handle interrogations," he said, his eyes lighting up.

"Uh, excuse me, Captain Stabler, aren't you jumping the gun a bit, here?" Olivia said, not liking what he was talking about.

Elliot turned to her. "Liv, you were talking about quitting, you didn't want to have to work twenty-hour days then go home and take care of five kids," he reminded her. "Less work, less hours, you'd never get another midnight call to a crime scene."

You talked me out of it!" Olivia said, cradling Josh.

Elliot sighed and looked at Cragen. "We will talk about this at home, and you'll have an answer tomorrow."

Cragen nodded. "Make the decision together," he said.

"We will," Elliot said. He grabbed the dog's leash and pulled, and the dog followed closely as the family walked out of the squad room.

"I told you he was going to turn it down," Polly said, walking out of the interview room.

Cragen nodded, turning to her, and he said, "You also said Munch and Alex were having another boy."

"I didn't," Polly said shaking her head. "I said they would name the baby Sam."

"Yeah," Cragen said, then his smirk faded. "Samantha," he said. "Do you always have to be right?" he asked, following her into his office.

* * *

**ONE YEAR LATER**

"Benson," the captain said, coming out of his office. He dropped a pile of paperwork on Olivia's desk. "This needs to get done. You're the only one around that can do it, since you're on ass-duty. Get a move on."

She turned from her spot at the coffee table, narrowed her eyes at the man, and moved to lunge for him, but two strong arms held her back. "Liv," her partner's voice whispered in her ear, "Relax. He's only giving you paperwork because you punched that guy in interrogation this morning. This guys an ass, baby."

"You couldn't have just taken the job?" she hissed, turning to him.

Elliot chuckled. "So I can have you looking at me like that? No way. I am your partner. I will always be your partner. We talked about it, and we both decided..."

"Yeah," Olivia said, shrugging her shoulders and getting his arms off of her. "So, partner, you gonna help me with this shit, since you're the reason I punched that guy?"

Elliot smirked as he sat across from her, where he belonged. "Maybe," he said.

"Maybe?" Olivia asked, sipping her coffee. "Maybe I'll sleep in one of the guest rooms tonight, maybe I'll leave you all alone in that beg bed..."

"Shut up," Elliot chuckled, picking up a file. "I was thinking," he said, running his pen over the document.

"Did it hurt?" Fin called from his right.

Elliot turned and furrowed his brow. "Listen, crab-ass, don't take your lack of sleep out on me."

Fin chuckled. "Man, babies take a lot outta ya," he said, shaking his head. "We've only got two. I can't imagine what your life is like," he said throwing a hand in their direction. "Seven, shit," he mumbled, shaking his head.

"Six," Elliot said, raising an eyebrow. "Fin, you know how many kids we have," he said, giving his friend a look.

Fin looked at Olivia, smirking. "You didn't..."

"So, you were thinking?" Olivia interrupted. "About what?" she asked, smiling brightly.

Elliot leaned back, looking at her. He tilted his head and took a good look at her. "Slightly bigger boobs, more irritable than usual, you woke me up at three in the morning to...holy shit," he gasped. "You're..."

"Surprise," Olivia said, tossing a photo on his desk, interrupting him. "Or it was supposed to be! Thank you, Big-Mouth Tutuola."

Fin laughed. "Hey, Casey told me, she didn't say it was supposed to be a surprise."

"Really?" Elliot asked, excited.

"Yes. We are having another child, Elliot. I swear, you eat too much protein," Olivia said, running a hand through her hair.

Elliot got out of his chair, holding the sonogram in his hand, and he knelt down in front of her. "I was thinking," he said with a teary-eyed smile, "That we should have another baby. Leyla's a year old, Josh is begging for a little brother." He let a tear roll down his cheek and looked into his wife's eyes. "How do you always know what I'm thinking?" he asked her softly. "How do you always know what I want?" he questioned, leaning in to kiss her.

Olivia heard the captain's door open again, and she put both of her hands on Elliot's shoulders to keep him from kissing her. "After all this time," she whispered, gazing into his incredible blue eyes, "It's really unavoidable."

**A/N: THE END. Happy and Fluffy. But...who's the new captain? Maybe there will be a sequel...**

**Review here, or on Twitter: TMG212**


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